Highly crystalline alpha-1,3-glucan

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein are compositions comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles having a high degree of crystallinity and small particle size. For example, the alpha-glucan particles can have a degree of crystallinity of at least about 0.65, and/or an average size of less than a micron. At least 50% of the glycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan in the disclosed particles are alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages. Further disclosed are methods of producing insoluble alpha-glucan particles, as well as their use in various applications and products.

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Nos.62/931,242 (filed Nov. 6, 2019), 62/931,239 (filed Nov. 6, 2019),63/035,978 (filed Jun. 8, 2020), and 63/084,036 (filed Sep. 28, 2020),which are all incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

FIELD

The present disclosure is in the field of polysaccharides. For example,the disclosure pertains to crystalline alpha-1,3-glucan, methods of itsproduction, and use of this material in various applications.

BACKGROUND

Driven by a desire to use polysaccharides in various applications,researchers have explored for polysaccharides that are biodegradable andthat can be made economically from renewably sourced feedstocks. Onesuch polysaccharide is alpha-1,3-glucan, an insoluble glucan polymercharacterized by having alpha-1,3-glycosidic linkages. This polymer hasbeen prepared, for example, using a glucosyltransferase enzyme isolatedfrom Streptococcus salivarius (Simpson et al., Microbiology141:1451-1460, 1995). Also for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,000,000disclosed the preparation of a spun fiber from enzymatically producedalpha-1,3-glucan. Various other glucan materials have also been studiedfor developing new or enhanced applications. For example, U.S. PatentAppl. Publ. No. 2015/0232819 discloses enzymatic synthesis of severalinsoluble glucans having mixed alpha-1,3 and -1,6 linkages.

New forms of insoluble alpha-glucan are desired to enhance the economicvalue and performance characteristics of this material in variousapplications. Addressing this need, described herein is insolublealpha-1,3-glucan having high crystallinity and controlled particle size.

SUMMARY

In one embodiment, the present disclosure concerns a compositioncomprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles having a degree ofcrystallinity of at least about 0.65, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucanhas a weight-average degree of polymerization (DPw) of at least 15, andat least 50% of the glycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucanare alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages.

In another embodiment, the present disclosure concerns a compositioncomprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles, wherein at least 80 wt % ofthe particles are in the form of plates and at least 50% of theglycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3glycosidic linkages, and: (i) at least 70% by weight of the insolublealpha-glucan particles have a diameter of less than 1.0 micron, and/or(ii) 45-55% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucan particles have adiameter of less than 0.35 micron.

In another embodiment, the present disclosure concerns a method ofproducing insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein. Such a methodcomprises: (a) providing insoluble alpha-glucan as produced in anenzymatic reaction comprising at least water, sucrose and aglucosyltransferase enzyme that synthesizes the insoluble alpha-glucan,wherein the insoluble alpha-glucan has a weight-average degree ofpolymerization (DPw) of at least about 200 and at least 50% of theglycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3glycosidic linkages; (b) hydrolyzing the insoluble alpha-glucan toinsoluble alpha-glucan particles with a DPw of about 35 to about 100,wherein the hydrolyzing is performed under aqueous conditions at a pH of2.0 or less, and (c) optionally isolating the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles produced in step (b).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1: Shown is the molecular weight (DPw) of alpha-1,3-glucan overtime during treatment under low pH hydrolysis conditions. The legendshows that either never-dried or dried alpha-1,3-glucan were enteredinto hydrolysis reactions at 40 or 80° C. Refer to Example 1.

FIG. 2: Shown is the crystallinity of hydrolyzed (DPw 50) andnon-hydrolyzed (DPw ˜800) alpha-1,3-glucan. Refer to Example 1.

FIGS. 3A-D: Shown are electron micrographs of hydrolyzed (DPw 50) (FIGS.3B and 3D) and non-hydrolyzed (DPw ˜800) (FIGS. 3A and 3C)alpha-1,3-glucan. Reference bars (500, 200, or 100 nm) are providedunder each micrograph. Refer to Example 1.

FIG. 4: Shown are particle size distributions of hydrolyzed (DPw 50) andnon-hydrolyzed (DPw ˜800) alpha-1,3-glucan in aqueous dispersions. Referto Example 1.

FIG. 5A: Shown are the viscosity profiles of 5 wt % aqueous dispersionsof DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan (0.76 CI) or DPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucan at aneutral pH of 6.4. Refer to Example 2.

FIG. 5B: Shown are the viscosity profiles of 5 wt % aqueous dispersionsof alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) at pH 2.0 or pH 6.4. Refer toExample 2.

FIG. 6: Shown are aqueous preparations (room temperature, pH 4.0)initially set up as dispersions comprising 4 wt % of DPw 50 (0.76 CI) orDPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucan and 14 wt % vinyl acetate/ethylene (VAE)latex. While DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan remained dispersed, DPw ˜800alpha-1,3-glucan settled out. Refer to Example 2.

FIG. 7: Shown are individual layers of either DPw 50 (0.76 CI)alpha-1,3-glucan (as 28.3 wt % solids in dispersion) or DPw ˜800alpha-1,3-glucan (as 33.7 wt % solids in dispersion) over “X” markings.The dried DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan was clear, whereas the dried DPw ˜800alpha-1,3-glucan was hazy white. Refer to Example 4.

FIG. 8: Shown are the viscosities (at 10 s⁻¹) of 10 wt % aqueouspreparations (neutral pH) of never-dried or dried alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw50, 0.76 CI; or DPw ˜800). Refer to Example 5.

FIG. 9: Shown is an SEM image of a dry emulsion in whichalpha-1,3-glucan encapsulates a hydrophobic core. White bar (inset), 5μm. Refer to Example 7.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The disclosures of all cited patent and non-patent literature areincorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Unless otherwise disclosed, the terms “a” and “an” as used herein areintended to encompass one or more (i.e., at least one) of a referencedfeature.

Where present, all ranges are inclusive and combinable, except asotherwise noted. For example, when a range of “1 to 5” (i.e., 1-5) isrecited, the recited range should be construed as including ranges “1 to4”, “1 to 3”, “1-2”, “1-2 & 4-5”, “1-3 & 5”, and the like.

The terms “alpha-glucan”, “alpha-glucan polymer” and the like are usedinterchangeably herein. An alpha-glucan is a polymer comprising glucosemonomeric units linked together by alpha-glycosidic linkages. In typicalembodiments, an alpha-glucan herein comprises 100% alpha-glycosidiclinkages, or at least about 80%, 81%, 82%, 83%, 84%, 85%, 86%, 87%, 88%,89%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99%alpha-glycosidic linkages. Examples of alpha-glucan polymers hereininclude alpha-1,3-glucan.

The terms “poly alpha-1,3-glucan”, “alpha-1,3-glucan”, “alpha-1,3-glucanpolymer” and the like are used interchangeably herein. Alpha-1,3-glucanis a polymer comprising glucose monomeric units linked together byglycosidic linkages, wherein at least about 50% of the glycosidiclinkages are alpha-1,3. Alpha-1,3-glucan in certain embodimentscomprises at least 90% or 95% alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages. Most or allof the other linkages in alpha-1,3-glucan herein typically arealpha-1,6, though some linkages may also be alpha-1,2 and/or alpha-1,4.

The term “copolymer” herein refers to a polymer comprising at least twodifferent types of alpha-glucan, such as dextran and alpha-1,3-glucan.The terms “graft copolymer”, “branched copolymer” and the like hereingenerally refer to a copolymer comprising a “backbone” (or “main chain”)and side chains branching from the backbone. The side chains arestructurally distinct from the backbone. Examples of graft copolymersherein comprise a dextran backbone (or dextran backbone that has beenmodified with about 1%-35% alpha-1,2 branches, e.g.), and at least oneside chain of alpha-1,3-glucan comprising at least about 50% alpha-1,3glycosidic linkages. An alpha-1,3-glucan side chain herein can have alinkage and molecular weight of alpha-1,3-glucan as disclosed herein,for example. In some aspects, a dextran backbone can have analpha-1,3-glucan extension, since the non-reducing end(s) of dextran canprime alpha-1,3-glucan synthesis by a glucosyltransferase enzyme.

The terms “dextran”, “dextran polymer”, “dextran molecule” and the likein some aspects herein refer to a water-soluble alpha-glucan comprisingat least 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 99.5%alpha-1,6 glycosidic linkages (with the balance of the linkagestypically being all or mostly alpha-1,3). Enzymes capable ofsynthesizing dextran from sucrose may be described as “dextransucrases”(EC 2.4.1.5). As used herein, the term “dextranase”(alpha-1,6-glucan-6-glucanohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.11) refers to an enzymecapable of endohydrolysing 1,6-alpha glycosidic linkages.

The terms “glycosidic linkage”, “glycosidic bond”, “linkage” and thelike are used interchangeably herein and refer to the covalent bondsconnecting the sugar monomers within a saccharide compound(oligosaccharides and/or polysaccharides). The term“alpha-1,3-glycosidic linkage” as used herein refers to the type ofcovalent bond that joins alpha-D-glucose molecules to each other throughcarbons 1 and 3 on adjacent alpha-D-glucose rings. The term“alpha-1,6-glycosidic linkage” as used herein refers to the covalentbond that joins alpha-D-glucose molecules to each other through carbons1 and 6 on adjacent alpha-D-glucose rings. The glycosidic linkages of aglucan polymer herein can also be referred to as “glucosidic linkages”.Herein, “alpha-D-glucose” will be referred to as “glucose”.

The glycosidic linkage profile of an alpha-glucan herein can bedetermined using any method known in the art. For example, a linkageprofile can be determined using methods using nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR) spectroscopy (e.g., ¹³C NMR and/or ¹H NMR). These and othermethods that can be used are disclosed in, for example, FoodCarbohydrates: Chemistry, Physical Properties, and Applications (S. W.Cui, Ed., Chapter 3, S. W. Cui, Structural Analysis of Polysaccharides,Taylor & Francis Group LLC, Boca Raton, Fla., 2005), which isincorporated herein by reference.

The “molecular weight” of alpha-glucan polymers herein can berepresented as weight-average molecular weight (Mw) or number-averagemolecular weight (Mn), the units of which are in Daltons (Da) orgrams/mole. Alternatively, the molecular weight of alpha-glucan polymerscan be represented as DPw (weight average degree of polymerization) orDPn (number average degree of polymerization). The molecular weight ofsmaller alpha-glucan polymers such as oligosaccharides can optionally beprovided as “DP” (degree of polymerization), which simply refers to thenumber of glucoses comprised within the alpha-glucan; “DP” can alsocharacterize the molecular weight of a polymer on an individual moleculebasis. Various means are known in the art for calculating these variousmolecular weight measurements such as with high-pressure liquidchromatography (HPLC), size exclusion chromatography (SEC), or gelpermeation chromatography (GPC).

As used herein, Mw can be calculated as Mw=ΣNiMi²/ΣNiMi, where Mi is themolecular weight of an individual chain i and Ni is the number of chainsof that molecular weight. Besides SEC, the Mw of a polymer can bedetermined by other techniques such as static light scattering, massspectrometry, MALDI-TOF (matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionizationtime-of-flight), small angle X-ray or neutron scattering, orultracentrifugation. As used herein, Mn can be calculated asMn=ΣNiMi/ΣNi where Mi is the molecular weight of a chain i and Ni is thenumber of chains of that molecular weight. Besides SEC, the Mn of apolymer can be determined by various colligative property methods suchas vapor pressure osmometry, end-group determination by spectroscopicmethods such as proton NMR, proton FTIR, or UV-Vis. As used herein, DPnand DPw can be calculated from Mw and Mn, respectively, by dividing themby molar mass of the one monomer unit M₁. In the case of unsubstitutedglucan polymer, M₁=162. In the case of a substituted (derivatized)glucan polymer, M₁=162+M_(f)×DoS, where M_(f) is molar mass of thesubstituting group, and DoS is degree of substitution (average number ofsubstituted groups per one glucose unit of the glucan polymer).

The terms “crystalline”, “crystalline solid”, “crystal” and like termsherein refer to a solid material whose constituents are arranged in aregularly ordered structure forming a lattice; such material typicallyis a portion of a larger composition having both crystalline andamorphous regions. An “amorphous” material is non-crystalline in thatits constituents are not organized in a definite lattice pattern, butrather are randomly organized. Crystalline materials, but not amorphousmaterials, usually have a characteristic geometric shape (e.g., plate).The terms “crystallinity”, “crystallinity index” (CI), “degree ofcrystallinity” and the like herein refer to the fractional amount (massfraction or volume fraction) of an insoluble alpha-glucan that iscrystalline, and can be referred to in decimal or percentage form (e.g.,a crystallinity of 0.65 corresponds to a crystallinity of 65%). Thisfractional amount is of a total amount or volume that includes theamorphous content of the insoluble alpha-glucan. Crystallinity hereincan be as measured using techniques such as differential scanningcalorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), small angle X-ray scattering(SAXS), infrared spectroscopy, and/or density measurements according to,for example, Struszczyk et al. (1987, J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 33:177-189),U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. Nos. 2015/0247176, 2010/0233773, or2015/0152196, and/or International Patent Appl. Publ. No. WO2018/081263,which are all incorporated herein by reference. In some aspects, thecrystallinity of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan herein can be as determinedaccording to the methodology disclosed in the below Examples.

The terms “particle”, “particulate” and like terms are interchangeablyused herein, and refers to the smallest identifiable unit in aparticulate system. A particle of insoluble alpha-glucan in some aspectshas an average size of about 0.05-1.0 micron (micrometer). The term“particulated” and like terms can be used to characterize particles ofinsoluble alpha-glucan herein; particulated insoluble alpha-glucan intypical aspects of the present disclosure is as this material existswhen dispersed under aqueous conditions. Particle size in some aspectscan refer to particle diameter and/or the length of the longest particledimension. The average size can be based on the average of diametersand/or longest particle dimensions of at least 50, 100, 500, 1000, 2500,5000, or 10000 or more particles, for example. Particles herein can bein plate form, for instance.

The terms “plate”, “platy”, “plate-like”, “flakey” and like terms hereincharacterize the shape of insoluble alpha-glucan particles in someaspects. Particles having this shape herein generally are flat (moretwo-dimensional than three-dimensional), as opposed to being spherical,cylindrical, fibrillar, fibrous, rod-like, cubic, acicular,spongey/porous, lamellar, or of some other shape. Examples of plateshape with respect to particles herein are shown in FIGS. 3B and 3D.Particles herein can optionally be referred to as “plates”, “platelets”,and like terms, and/or collectively as “microcrystalline glucan” andlike terms.

The term “sucrose” herein refers to a non-reducing disaccharide composedof an alpha-D-glucose molecule and a beta-D-fructose molecule linked byan alpha-1,2-glycosidic bond. Sucrose is known commonly as table sugar.Sucrose can alternatively be referred to as“alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-beta-D-fructofuranoside”.“Alpha-D-glucopyranosyl” and “glucosyl” are used interchangeably herein.

The terms “glucosyltransferase”, “glucosyltransferase enzyme”, “GTF”,“glucansucrase” and the like are used interchangeably herein. Theactivity of a glucosyltransferase herein catalyzes the reaction of thesubstrate sucrose to make the products alpha-glucan and fructose. Otherproducts (by-products) of a GTF reaction can include glucose, varioussoluble gluco-oligosaccharides, and leucrose. Wild type forms ofglucosyltransferase enzymes generally contain (in the N-terminal toC-terminal direction) a signal peptide (which is typically removed bycleavage processes), a variable domain, a catalytic domain, and aglucan-binding domain. A glucosyltransferase herein is classified underthe glycoside hydrolase family 70 (GH70) according to the CAZy(Carbohydrate-Active EnZymes) database (Cantarel et al., Nucleic AcidsRes. 37:D233-238, 2009).

The term “glucosyltransferase catalytic domain” herein refers to thedomain of a glucosyltransferase enzyme that providesalpha-glucan-synthesizing activity to a glucosyltransferase enzyme. Aglucosyltransferase catalytic domain typically does not require thepresence of any other domains to have this activity.

The terms “enzymatic reaction”, “glucosyltransferase reaction”, “glucansynthesis reaction”, “reaction composition”, “reaction formulation” andthe like are used interchangeably herein and generally refer to areaction that initially comprises water, sucrose, at least one activeglucosyltransferase enzyme, and optionally other components. Componentsthat can be further present in a glucosyltransferase reaction typicallyafter it has commenced include fructose, glucose, leucrose, solublegluco-oligosaccharides (e.g., DP2-DP7) (such may be considered asproducts or by-products, depending on the glucosyltransferase used),and/or insoluble alpha-glucan product(s) of DP8 or higher (e.g., DP100and higher). It would be understood that certain glucan products, suchas alpha-1,3-glucan with a degree of polymerization (DP) of at least 8or 9, are water-insoluble and thus not dissolved in a glucan synthesisreaction, but rather may be present out of solution (e.g., by virtue ofhaving precipitated from the reaction). It is in a glucan synthesisreaction where the step of contacting water, sucrose and aglucosyltransferase enzyme is performed. The term “under suitablereaction conditions” as used herein refers to reaction conditions thatsupport conversion of sucrose to alpha-glucan product(s) and fructosevia glucosyltransferase enzyme activity. It is during such a reactionthat glucosyl groups originally derived from the input sucrose areenzymatically transferred and used in alpha-glucan polymer synthesis;glucosyl groups as involved in this process can thus optionally bereferred to as the glucosyl component or moiety (or like terms) of aglucosyltransferase reaction. Insoluble alpha-glucan produced by aglycosyltranferase reaction herein can in turn be used to prepareinsoluble alpha-glucan of the present disclosure, such as through ahydrolysis procedure.

The “yield” of insoluble alpha-glucan product in a glucosyltransferasereaction in some aspects herein represents the molar yield based on theconverted sucrose. The molar yield of an alpha-glucan product can becalculated based on the moles of insoluble alpha-glucan product dividedby the moles of the sucrose converted. Moles of converted sucrose can becalculated as follows: (mass of initial sucrose−mass of finalsucrose)/molecular weight of sucrose [342 g/mol]. This molar yieldcalculation can be considered as a measure of selectivity of thereaction toward the insoluble alpha-glucan. In some aspects, the “yield”of insoluble alpha-glucan product in a glucosyltransferase reaction canbe based on the glucosyl component of the reaction. Such a yield (yieldbased on glucosyl) can be measured using the following formula:

Insoluble Alpha-GlucanYield=((IS/2−(FS/2+LE/2+GL+SO))/(IS/2−FS/2))×100%.

The fructose balance of a glucosyltransferase reaction can be measuredto ensure that HPLC data, if applicable, are not out of range (90-110%is considered acceptable). Fructose balance can be measured using thefollowing formula:

Fructose Balance=((180/342×(FS+LE)+FR)/(180/342×IS))×100%.

In the above two formulae, IS is [Initial Sucrose], FS is [FinalSucrose], LE is [Leucrose], GL is [Glucose], SO is [Soluble Oligomers](gluco-oligosaccharides), and FR is [Fructose]; the concentrations ofeach foregoing substrate/product provided in double brackets are inunits of grams/L and as measured by HPLC, for example.

A “cake” of insoluble alpha-glucan herein refers to a preparation incondensed, compacted, packed, squeezed, and/or compressed form thatcomprises at least (i) about 50%-90% by weight water or an aqueoussolution, and (ii) about 10%-50% by weight insoluble alpha-glucan. Acake in some aspects can be referred to as a “filter cake” or a “wetcake”. A cake herein typically has a soft, solid-like consistency.

A composition herein comprising insoluble alpha-glucan that is “dry” or“dried” typically has less than 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0.5, or 0.1 wt % watercomprised therein.

The term “hydrolysis” and like terms herein refer to the decompositionof insoluble alpha-glucan to smaller (lower molecular weight), but stillinsoluble, alpha-glucan, where water is consumed in cleaving glycosidiclinkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan. A “hydrolysis reaction”,“hydrolysis reaction composition”, or like term herein typically refersto a reaction that initially comprises at least an aqueous liquid,insoluble alpha-glucan, and a hydrolyzing agent (e.g., chemical,catalyst/enzyme). An acid hydrolysis reaction as referred to hereincomprises acid as a hydrolyzing agent; the pH of an acid hydrolysisreaction herein can be 4.0 or below, for example.

The terms “percent by volume”, “volume percent”, “vol %”, “v/v %” andthe like are used interchangeably herein. The percent by volume of asolute in a solution can be determined using the formula: [(volume ofsolute)/(volume of solution)]×100%.

The terms “percent by weight”, “weight percentage (wt %)”,“weight-weight percentage (% w/w)” and the like are used interchangeablyherein. Percent by weight refers to the percentage of a material on amass basis as it is comprised in a composition, mixture, or solution.

The terms “weight/volume percent”, “w/v %” and the like are usedinterchangeably herein. Weight/volume percent can be calculated as:((mass [g] of material)/(total volume [mL] of the material plus theliquid in which the material is placed))×100%. The material can beinsoluble in the liquid (i.e., be a solid phase in a liquid phase, suchas with a dispersion), or soluble in the liquid (i.e., be a solutedissolved in the liquid).

The term “pigment volume concentration” (PVC) herein refers to the ratioof the volume of a pigment to the volume of total nonvolatile materialpresent in a coating, and is typically expressed as a percentage. Theformula for calculating PVC is: ((pigment volume)/(pigment volume+bindervolume+other solids volume))×100. A “pigment” herein can refer to, forexample, any organic and/or inorganic entity whose solubility in wateris less than 0.01 wt % at 20° C. (e.g., less than 0.0001 wt %), andwhich exhibits light absorption at a wavelength ranging from 350 nm to700 nm, such as absorption with one maximum.

The terms “aqueous liquid”, “aqueous fluid”, “aqueous conditions”,“aqueous reaction conditions”, “aqueous setting”, “aqueous system” andthe like as used herein can refer to water or an aqueous solution. An“aqueous solution” herein can comprise one or more dissolved salts,where the maximal total salt concentration can be about 3.5 wt % in someembodiments. Although aqueous liquids herein typically comprise water asthe only solvent in the liquid, an aqueous liquid can optionallycomprise one or more other solvents (e.g., polar organic solvent) thatare miscible in water. Thus, an aqueous solution can comprise a solventhaving at least about 10 wt % water.

An “aqueous composition” herein has a liquid component that comprisesabout, or at least about, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 95, 99, or100 wt % water, for example. Examples of aqueous compositions includemixtures, solutions, dispersions (e.g., colloidal dispersions),suspensions and emulsions, for example.

As used herein, the term “colloidal dispersion” refers to aheterogeneous system having a dispersed phase and a dispersion medium,i.e., microscopically dispersed insoluble particles are suspendedthroughout another substance (e.g., an aqueous composition such as wateror aqueous solution). An example of a colloidal dispersion herein is ahydrocolloid. All, or a portion of, the particles of a colloidaldispersion such as a hydrocolloid can comprise insolublealpha-1,3-glucan as presently disclosed. The terms “dispersant” and“dispersion agent” are used interchangeably herein to refer to amaterial that promotes the formation and/or stabilization of adispersion. “Dispersing” herein refers to the act of preparing adispersion of a material in an aqueous liquid. As used herein, the term“latex” (and like terms) refers to a dispersion of one or more types ofpolymer particles in water or aqueous solution; typically, at leastinsoluble alpha-glucan particles are in a latex composition as adispersed polymer component. In some aspects, a latex is an emulsionthat comprises a dispersion of at least insoluble alpha-glucanparticles. An “emulsion” herein is a dispersion of minute droplets ofone liquid in another liquid in which the droplets are not soluble ormiscible (e.g., a non-polar substance such as oil or other organicliquid such as an alkane, in a polar liquid such as water or aqueoussolution). An emulsion can further comprise dispersed alpha-glucanparticles herein, for example, which optionally can stabilize theemulsion. In some aspects, however, an emulsion herein can be a “dryemulsion”. A dry emulsion is typically produced by removing all or most(e.g. >95%, >99%, or >99.5%) of the water of a liquid emulsion, such asby freeze-drying or spray-drying.

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles of the present disclosure can providestability to a dispersion or emulsion, for example. The “stability” (orthe quality of being “stable”) of a dispersion or emulsion herein is,for example, the ability of dispersed particles of a dispersion, orliquid droplets dispersed in another liquid (emulsion), to remaindispersed (e.g., about, or at least about, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 96,97, 98, 99, or 100 wt % of the particles of the dispersion or liquiddroplets of the emulsion are in a dispersed state) for a period ofabout, or at least about, 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 30, or 36 monthsfollowing initial preparation of the dispersion or emulsion. A stabledispersion or emulsion can resist total creaming, sedimentation,flocculation, and/or coalescence of dispersed/emulsified material.

An alpha-glucan that is “insoluble”, “aqueous-insoluble”,“water-insoluble” (and like terms) (e.g., alpha-1,3-glucan with a DP of8 or higher) herein does not dissolve (or does not appreciably dissolve)in water or other aqueous conditions, optionally where the aqueousconditions are further characterized to have a pH of 0-9 (e.g., pH 6-8)and/or temperature of about 1 to 130° C. (e.g., 20-25° C.). In someaspects, less than 1.0 gram (e.g., no detectable amount) of anaqueous-insoluble graft copolymer or derivative thereof dissolves in1000 milliliters of such aqueous conditions (e.g., water at 23° C.). Incontrast, glucans such as certain oligosaccharides herein that are“soluble”, “aqueous-soluble”, “water-soluble” and the like (e.g.,alpha-1,3-glucan with a DP less than 8) appreciably dissolve under theseconditions.

The term “viscosity” as used herein refers to the measure of the extentto which a fluid (aqueous or non-aqueous) resists a force tending tocause it to flow. Various units of viscosity that can be used hereininclude centipoise (cP, cps) and Pascal-second (Pa·s), for example. Acentipoise is one one-hundredth of a poise; one poise is equal to 0.100kg·m⁻¹s⁻¹.

The terms “crosslink”, “crosslinked” and the like herein refer to one ormore bonds (typically covalent) that connect polymers such as insolublealpha-glucan particles as presently disclosed. A crosslink havingmultiple bonds typically comprises one or more atoms that are part of acrosslinking agent that was used to form the crosslink. The terms“crosslinking agent”, “crosslinker” and the like herein refer to an atomor compound that can create crosslinks. The term “crosslinking reaction”and like terms (e.g., “crosslinking composition”, “crosslinkingpreparation”) herein typically refer to a reaction comprising at least asolvent, a crosslinking agent, insoluble alpha-glucan particles andoptionally another polymer; a reaction can be in the context ofpreparing a film or coating, for example. A crosslinking reaction insome aspects comprises an aqueous solvent such as water, whereas inother aspects the solvent is non-aqueous.

The terms “household care product”, “home care” and the like typicallyrefer to products, goods and services relating to the treatment,cleaning, caring and/or conditioning of a home and its contents. Theforegoing include, for example, chemicals, compositions, products, orcombinations thereof having application in such care.

The terms “fiber”, “fibers” and the like herein refer to staple fibers(staple length fibers) and continuous fibers, in some aspects. Fibersherein can comprise alpha-1,3-glucan, natural fiber (e.g., cellulose,cotton, wool, silk), or synthetic fiber (e.g., polyester), or any othertype of material disclosed herein that can form a fiber.

The terms “fabric”, “textile”, “cloth” and the like are usedinterchangeably herein to refer to a woven material having a network ofnatural and/or artificial fibers. Such fibers can be in the form ofthread or yarn, for example.

The terms “non-woven”, “non-woven product”, “non-woven web” and the likeherein refer to a web of individual fibers or filaments that areinterlaid, typically in a random or unidentifiable manner. Thiscontrasts with a knitted or woven fabric, which has an identifiablenetwork of fibers or filaments. In some aspects, a non-woven productcomprises a non-woven web that is bound or attached to another materialsuch as a substrate or backing. A non-woven in some aspects can furthercontain a binder or adhesive (strengthening agent) that binds adjacentnon-woven fibers together. A non-woven binder or adhesive agent can beapplied to the non-woven in the form of a dispersion/latex, solution, orsolid, for example, and then the treated non-woven is typically dried.

A “fabric care composition”, “laundry care composition”, and like termsrefer to any composition suitable for treating fabric, non-wovens,and/or any similar material in some manner. Examples of such acomposition include laundry detergents and fabric softeners.

A “detergent composition” herein typically comprises at least asurfactant (detergent compound) and/or a builder. A “surfactant” hereinrefers to a substance that tends to reduce the surface tension of aliquid in which the substance is dissolved. A surfactant may act as adetergent, wetting agent, emulsifier, foaming agent, and/or dispersant,for example.

The term “personal care product” and like terms typically refer toproducts, goods and services relating to the treatment, cleaning,cleansing, caring or conditioning of a person. The foregoing include,for example, chemicals, compositions, products, or combinations thereofhaving application in such care.

The terms “ingestible product”, “ingestible composition” and the likerefer to any substance that, either alone or together with anothersubstance, may be taken orally (i.e., by mouth), whether intended forconsumption or not. Thus, an ingestible product includes food/beverageproducts. “Food/beverage products” refer to any edible product intendedfor consumption (e.g., for nutritional purposes) by humans or animals,including solids, semi-solids, or liquids. A “food” herein canoptionally be referred to as a “foodstuff”, “food product”, or otherlike term, for example. “Non-edible products” (“non-ediblecompositions”) refer to any composition that can be taken by the mouthfor purposes other than food or beverage consumption. Examples ofnon-edible products herein include supplements, nutraceuticals,functional food products, pharmaceutical products, oral care products(e.g., dentifrices, mouthwashes), and cosmetic products such assweetened lip balms. A “pharmaceutical product”, “medicine”,“medication”, “drug” or like term herein refers to a composition used totreat disease or injury, and can be administered enterally orparenterally.

The terms “film”, “sheet” and like terms herein refer to a generallythin, visually continuous material. A film can be comprised as a layeror coating on a material, or can be alone (e.g., not attached to amaterial surface; free-standing). A “coating” (and like terms) as usedherein refers to a layer covering a surface of a material. The term“uniform thickness” as used to characterize a film or coating herein canrefer to a contiguous area that (i) is at least 20% of the totalfilm/coating area, and (ii) has a standard deviation of thickness ofless than about 50 nm, for example. The term “continuous layer” means alayer of a composition applied to at least a portion of a substrate,wherein a dried layer of the composition covers ≥99% of the surface towhich it has been applied and having less than 1% voids in the layerthat expose the substrate surface. The ≥99% of the surface to which thelayer has been applied excludes any area of the substrate to which thelayer has not been applied. A coating herein can make a continuous layerin some aspects. A coating composition (and like terms) herein refers toall the solid components that form a layer on a substrate, such asinsoluble alpha-glucan particles herein and, optionally, pigment,surfactant, dispersing agent, binder, crosslinking agent, and/or otheradditives.

The term “paint” (and like terms) herein is a type of coatingcomposition that is a dispersion of a pigment in a suitable liquid(e.g., aqueous liquid) that can be used to form an adherent coating whenspread on a surface in a thin coat. Paint as applied to a surface canprovide coloration/decoration, protection, and/or treatment (e.g.,primer) to the surface. A paint herein, by virtue of further comprisingdispersed insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (i.e., a dispersed polymer), canoptionally be characterized as a latex or latex paint.

A “composite” herein comprises two or more components includinginsoluble alpha-glucan particles of the present disclosure. Typically,the components of a composite resist separation and one or more of thecomponents display enhanced and/or different properties as compared toits properties alone, outside the composite (i.e., a composite is notsimply an admixture, which generally is easily separable to its originalcomponents). A composite herein generally is a solid material, and canbe made via an extrusion or molding process, for example.

The terms “sequence identity”, “identity” and the like as used hereinwith respect to a polypeptide amino acid sequence (e.g., that of aglucosyltransferase) are as defined and determined in U.S. Patent Appl.Publ. No. 2017/0002336, which is incorporated herein by reference.

The term “isolated” means a substance (or process) in a form orenvironment that does not occur in nature. A non-limiting example of anisolated substance includes any non-naturally occurring substance suchas some forms of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan herein (as well as theenzymatic reactions and other processes used to prepare it). It isbelieved that the embodiments disclosed herein are synthetic/man-made(could not have been made except for human intervention/involvement),and/or have properties that are not naturally occurring.

The term “increased” as used herein can refer to a quantity or activitythat is at least about 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10%, 11%,12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%, 50%, 100%, or 200% morethan the quantity or activity for which the increased quantity oractivity is being compared. The terms “increased”, “elevated”,“enhanced”, “greater than”, “improved” and the like are usedinterchangeably herein.

New forms of insoluble alpha-glucan are desired to enhance the economicvalue and performance characteristics of this material in variousapplications. Compositions comprising insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan havinghigh crystallinity and controlled particle size are presently disclosedto address this need.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure concern a compositioncomprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles having a degree ofcrystallinity of at least about 0.65, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucanhas a weight-average degree of polymerization (DPw) of at least 15, andat least 50% of the glycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucanare alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages. Yet some embodiments of the presentdisclosure concern a composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucanparticles, wherein at least about 70 wt % of the particles are in theform of plates and at least 50% of the glycosidic linkages of theinsoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages, and wherein:(i) at least 80% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucan particles havea diameter of less than 1.0 micron, and/or (ii) 40-60% by weight of theinsoluble alpha-glucan particles have a diameter of less than 0.35micron. Insoluble alpha-glucan particles as presently disclosed haveseveral advantageous features, such as, in some aspects, being stableunder low pH conditions (e.g., stability of molecular weight and/orviscosity of an aqueous dispersion of the particles), having uniqueoptical characteristics (e.g., high optical clarity, translucent),having enhanced viscosity profiles (e.g., higher viscosity compared withhigher DPw insoluble alpha-glucan, retaining viscosity capacity afterbeing dried), and/or having enhanced pigment extender function in paint.

Typically, at least about 50% of the glycosidic linkages of theinsoluble alpha-glucan of the presently disclosed compositions arealpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages. Insoluble alpha-glucan in some aspectscan comprise about, or at least about, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 85%,90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, 99.5%, or 100%alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages. In some aspects, accordingly, insolublealpha-glucan has less than about 60%, 50%, 40%, 30%, 20%, 15%, 10%, 9%,8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, or 0% glycosidic linkages that arenot alpha-1,3. In general, the glycosidic linkages that are notalpha-1,3 are mostly or entirely alpha-1,6. In certain embodiments,insoluble alpha-glucan has no branch points or less than about 5%, 4%,3%, 2%, or 1% branch points as a percent of the glycosidic linkages inthe glucan. In aspects in which alpha-glucan comprises 50% alpha-1,3glycosidic linkages, such glucan does not comprise alternan (alternatingalpha-1,3 and -1,6 linkages).

In some aspects, the DPw or DPn of insoluble alpha-glucan is at leastabout 15. The DPw or DPn of insoluble alpha-glucan in some aspects canbe about, at least about, or less than about, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 36,37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54,55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 110, 125, 150,175, 200, 15-100, 25-100, 35-100, 15-80, 25-80, 35-80, 15-60, 25-60,35-60, 15-55, 25-55, 25-50, 35-55, 35-50, 35-45, 35-40, 40-100, 40-80,40-60, 40-55, 40-50, 45-60, 45-55, or 45-50, for example.

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles in some aspects of the presentdisclosure have a degree of crystallinity (crystallinity index) of atleast about 0.65. The degree of crystallinity of particles can be about,or at least about, 0.55, 0.60, 0.65, 0.66, 0.67, 0.68, 0.69, 0.70, 0.71,0.72, 0.73, 0.74, 0.75, 0.76, 0.77, 0.78, 0.79, 0.80, 0.81, 0.82, 0.83,0.84, 0.85, 0.60-0.83, 0.65-0.83, 0.67-0.83, 0.69-0.83, 0.60-0.81,0.65-0.81, 0.67-0.81, 0.69-0.81, 0.60-0.78, 0.65-0.78, 0.67-0.78,0.69-0.78, 0.60-0.76, 0.65-0.76, 0.67-0.76, or 0.69-0.76, for example.In general, that portion of insoluble alpha-glucan herein that is notcrystalline is amorphous. Flowing from the foregoing crystallinityvalues, the wt % of particles that is amorphous is about, or less thanabout, 45%, 40%, 35%, 30%, 25%, 20%, or 15%, for example. The degree ofcrystallinity of alpha-glucan particles herein can be as when measuredaccording to any suitable method (e.g., as listed above or in the belowExamples), such as follows. A sample of insoluble alpha-glucan herein isdried for at least about 2 hours (e.g., 8-12 hours) in a vacuum oven setat about 55-65° C. (e.g., 60° C.). The sample is then be packed into astainless steel holder with a well of about 1-2 cm wide by 3-5 cm longby 3-5 mm deep, after which the holder is loaded into a suitablediffractometer (e.g., X'PERT MPD POWDER diffractometer, PANalyticalB.V., The Netherlands) set in reflection mode to measure the X-raydiffraction pattern of the sample. The X-ray source is a Cu X-ray tubeline source with an optical focusing mirror and a ˜ 1/16° narrowingslit. X-rays are detected with a 1-D detector and an anti-scatter slitset at ˜⅛°. Data are collected in the range of about 4 to 60 degrees oftwo-theta at about 0.1 degrees per step. The resulting X-ray pattern isthen analyzed by subtracting a linear baseline from about 7.2 to 30.5degrees, subtracting the XRD pattern of a known amorphousalpha-1,3-glucan sample that has been scaled to fit the data, and thenfitting the remaining crystal peaks in that range with a series ofGaussian curves corresponding to known dehydrated alpha-1,3-glucancrystal reflections. The area corresponding to the crystal peaks is thendivided by the total area under the baseline-subtracted curve to yield acrystallinity index.

At least about 80 wt % of the particles of insoluble alpha-glucan in acomposition herein are in the form of plates, for example. In someaspects, about, or at least about, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84,85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 60-85,60-80, 60-75, 60-70, 65-85, 65-80, 65-75, 65-70, 70-85, 70-80, or 70-75wt % of the particles of insoluble alpha-glucan are in the form ofplates. Plates of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan herein can visually be thesame as, or similar to, the particles shown in FIGS. 3B and 3D (e.g.,when viewed by electron microscopy such as TEM or SEM). Typically, thebalance of the particles of insoluble alpha-glucan in the compositionare of non-plate form, such as what is shown in FIG. 3C. In someaspects, the balance of the particles that are of non-plate form can becharacterized as being fibrillar and/or striated in appearance. However,in some aspects, about, or at least about, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, or 70wt % of the particles of insoluble alpha-glucan in a composition hereinare in the form of plates.

In some aspects of the present disclosure, at least about 70% by weightof the insoluble alpha-glucan particles of a composition have a diameterof less than 1.0 micron. Yet, in some aspects, about, or at least about,65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 65-95%, 70-95%, 75-95%, 80-95%,85-95%, 65-90%, 70-90%, 75-90%, 80-90%, 85-90%, 65-85%, 70-85%, 75-85%,or 80-85% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucan particles of acomposition have a diameter of less than about 1.0 micron. In someaspects, about 40-60%, 40-55%, 45-60%, 45-55%, 47-53%, 48-52%, 49-51%,or 50% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucan particles have a diameterof about, or less than about, 1.0, 0.9, 0.8, 0.7, 0.6, 0.5, 0.4, 0.35,0.34, 0.32, 0.30, 0.28, 0.26, 0.25, 0.24, 0.23, 0.22, 0.21, 0.20, 0.19,0.18, 0.17, 0.16, 0.15, 0.14, 0.13, 0.12, 0.11, 0.10, 0.10-1.0,0.10-0.80, 0.10-0.60, 0.10-0.40, 0.10-0.35, 0.10-0.30, 0.10-0.25,0.10-0.20, 0.15-0.35, 0.15-0.30, 0.15-0.25, or 0.15-0.20 micron; theseforegoing micron values can optionally be considered to be a “D50”(diameter-50) value. Alpha-glucan particles in some aspects can have athickness of about 0.010, 0.015, 0.020, 0.025, 0.030, or 0.010-0.030micron; such a thickness can be in conjunction with any of the foregoingdiameter aspects. Particle size herein can be measured by a processcomprising light scattering or electrical impedance change (e.g., usinga Coulter Counter), as described in any of U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,091,492,6,741,350 and 9,297,737 (all incorporated herein by reference), and/oras disclosed in the below Examples, for example. Particle size and/ordistributions can be as measured for particles comprised in an aqueousdispersion, and/or as measured using a light scatter technique, forexample.

Alpha-glucan particles in some aspects have a polydispersity index (PDI)of about, or less than about, 1.13, 1.17, 1.2, 1.23, 1.27, 1.3,1.13-1.3, 1.13-1.27, 1.13-1.23, 1.17-1.3, 1.17-1.27, 1.17-1.23, or1.18-1.22.

Alpha-glucan herein is insoluble in aqueous systems that are not highlyalkaline, such as a system with a pH 10 or 11. In general, thesolubility of a glucan polymer in aqueous settings herein is related toits linkage profile, molecular weight, and/or degree of branching. Forexample, alpha-1,3-glucan with ≥95% 1,3 linkages is generally insolubleat a DP of 8 and above in aqueous conditions at 20° C. In general, asmolecular weight increases, the percentage of alpha-1,3 linkagesrequired for alpha-1,3-glucan insolubility decreases.

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein can be as produced by ahydrolysis method disclosed herein, for example. Typically, insolublealpha-glucan particles herein and/or any precursors thereof do not haveany chemical derivatization (e.g., etherification, esterification,phosphorylation, sulfation) (e.g., no substitution of hydrogens ofglucan hydroxyl groups with a non-sugar chemical group). Insolublealpha-glucan used for preparing particles herein typically isenzymatically derived in an inert vessel (typically under cell-freeconditions), and is not derived from a cell wall (e.g., fungal cellwall).

Some embodiments of the present disclosure concern a method of producinginsoluble alpha-glucan particles herein. Such a method can comprise thefollowing steps, for example: (a) providing insoluble alpha-glucan(precursor) as produced in an enzymatic reaction comprising at leastwater, sucrose and a glucosyltransferase enzyme that synthesizes theinsoluble alpha-glucan, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucan has a DPw orDPn of at least about 200 and at least 50% of the glycosidic linkages ofthe insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages; (b)hydrolyzing the insoluble alpha-glucan (precursor) to insolublealpha-glucan particles with a DPw or DPn, for example, of about 35 toabout 100 (or, e.g., up to about 200), wherein said hydrolyzing isperformed under aqueous conditions at a pH of 2.0 or less, and (c)optionally isolating the insoluble alpha-glucan particles produced instep (b). Step (b) of this method can optionally be characterized as an“acid hydrolysis” method or reaction.

Step (a) of a method of producing insoluble alpha-glucan particlesherein concerns providing an insoluble alpha-glucan precursor, which isthen entered into hydrolysis step (b). Insoluble “alpha-glucanprecursor” herein is itself insoluble alpha-glucan, but has a molecularweight that is greater than that of the insoluble alpha-glucan producedby the acid hydrolysis method. An insoluble alpha-glucan precursor canhave a glycosidic linkage profile as disclosed above (e.g., at leastabout 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 95%, 99%, or 100% alpha-1,3 glycosidiclinkages) and a DPw or DPn of about, or at least about 200, 300, 400,500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000, 1100, 1200, 1300, 1400, 1500, 1600, 1650,200-1650, 300-1650, 400-1650, 500-1650, 600-1650, 700-1650, 200-1250,300-1250, 400-1250, 500-1250, 600-1250, 700-1250, 200-1000, 300-1000,400-1000, 500-1000, 600-1000, 700-1000, 200-900, 300-900, 400-900,500-900, 600-900, or 700-900, for example.

An insoluble alpha-glucan precursor herein is produced by an enzymaticreaction comprising at least water, sucrose and a glucosyltransferaseenzyme that synthesizes the insoluble alpha-glucan.Glucosyltransferases, reaction conditions, and/or processes contemplatedto be useful for producing insoluble alpha-glucan precursor herein aredisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,000,000, 8,871,474, 10301604 and 10260053,U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. Nos. 2019/0112456, 2019/0078062, 2019/0078063,2018/0340199, 2018/0021238, 2018/0273731, 2017/0002335 and 2015/0064748,and Int. Patent Appl. Publ. No. WO2017/079595, for example, all of whichare incorporated herein by reference.

In some aspects, a glucosyltransferase enzyme for producing an insolublealpha-glucan precursor can comprise an amino acid sequence that is 100%identical to, or at least 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%,98.5%, 99%, or 99.5% identical to, SEQ ID NO:2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16,18, 20, 26, 28, 30, 34, or 59, or amino acid residues 55-960 of SEQ IDNO:4, residues 54-957 of SEQ ID NO:65, residues 55-960 of SEQ ID NO:30,residues 55-960 of SEQ ID NO:28, or residues 55-960 of SEQ ID NO:20, andhave glucosyltransferase activity; these amino acid sequences aredisclosed in U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2019/0078063, which isincorporated herein by reference. It is noted that a glucosyltransferaseenzyme comprising SEQ ID NO:2, 4, 8, 10, 14, 20, 26, 28, 30, 34, oramino acid residues 55-960 of SEQ ID NO:4, residues 54-957 of SEQ IDNO:65, residues 55-960 of SEQ ID NO:30, residues 55-960 of SEQ ID NO:28,or residues 55-960 of SEQ ID NO:20, can synthesize insolublealpha-glucan comprising at least about 90% (˜100%) alpha-1,3 linkages.Any of the foregoing glucosyltransferase enzyme amino acid sequences canbe modified as described below to increase product yield.

A glucosyltransferase enzyme for producing an insoluble alpha-glucanprecursor can, in some aspects, synthesize insoluble alpha-glucan at ayield of at least about 40%. The yield of insoluble alpha-glucan by aglucosyltransferase enzyme in some aspects can be about, or at leastabout, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 91%, 92%,93%, 94%, 95%, or 96%. Yield in some aspects can be measured based onthe glucosyl component of the reaction. Yield in some aspects can bemeasured using HPLC or NIR spectroscopy. Yield can be achieved in areaction conducted for about 16-24 hours (e.g., ˜20 hours), for example.Examples of such a glucosyltransferase enzyme are those having an aminoacid sequence modified such that the enzyme produces more products(insoluble alpha-glucan precursor and fructose), and less by-products(e.g., glucose, oligosaccharides such as leucrose), from a given amountof sucrose substrate. For example, one, two, three, four, or more aminoacid residues of the catalytic domain of a glucosyltransferase hereincan be modified/substituted to obtain an enzyme that produces moreproducts. Examples of a suitable modified glucosyltransferase enzyme aredisclosed in Tables 3-7 of U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2019/0078063. Amodified glucosyltransferase enzyme, for example, can comprise one ormore amino acid substitutions corresponding with those in Tables 3-7(ibid.) that is/are associated with an insoluble alpha-glucan yield ofat least 40% (the position numbering of such at least one substitutioncorresponds with the position numbering of SEQ ID NO:62 as disclosed inU.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2019/0078063). A set of amino acidmodifications as listed in Tables 6 or 7 (ibid.) can be used, forexample.

In some aspects, an alpha-glucan precursor can be a graft copolymer suchas disclosed in Int. Patent Appl. Publ. No. WO2017/079595 or U.S. PatentAppl. Publ. No. 2019/0185893, which are incorporated herein byreference. Such a graft copolymer comprises dextran (as backbone) andalpha-1,3-glucan (as side chain[s]), where the latter component has beengrafted onto the former component; typically, this graft copolymer isproduced by using dextran, or alpha-1,2-branched dextran, as a primerfor alpha-1,3-glucan synthesis by an alpha-1,3-glucan-producingglucosyltransferase as described above. In some aspects, a graftcopolymer comprises about, at least about, or less than about, 10%, 20%,30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 35-65%, 35-60%, 35-55%,40-65%, 40-60%, 40-55%, 45-65%, 45-60%, 45-55%, 50-65%, 50-60%, or50-55% by weight of a dextran backbone, where the balance of the graftcopolymer is of alpha-1,3-glucan side chain(s). Alpha-1,3-glucan sidechain(s) of an alpha-glucan graft copolymer herein can bealpha-1,3-glucan as presently disclosed. Dextran backbone of analpha-glucan graft copolymer herein can comprise about 100% alpha-1,6glycosidic linkages (i.e., completely linear dextran backbone), orabout, or at least about, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 99.5%alpha-1,6 glycosidic linkages (i.e., substantially linear dextranbackbone), and/or have a DP or DPw of about, at least about, or lessthan about, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19,20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 85, 90, 95,100, 105, 110, 150, 200, 250, 300, 400, 500, 8-20, 8-30, 8-100, 8-500,3-4, 3-5, 3-6, 3-7, 3-8, 4-5, 4-6, 4-7, 4-8, 5-6, 5-7, 5-8, 6-7, 6-8,7-8, 90-120, 95-120, 100-120, 105-120, 110-120, 115-120, 90-115, 95-115,100-115, 105-115, 110-115, 90-110, 95-110, 100-110, 105-110, 90-105,95-105, 100-105, 90-100, 95-100, 90-95, 85-95, or 85-90, for example. Insome aspects, a dextran backbone (before being integrated into a graftcopolymer) has been alpha-1,2-branched, the percent alpha-1,2 branchingof a backbone of a graft copolymer herein can be about, at least about,or less than about, 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10%, 11%, 12%,13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%, 21%, 22%, 23%, 24%, 25%, 2-25%,2-20%, 2-15%, 2-10%, 5-25%, 5-20%, 5-15%, 5-10%, 7-13%, 8-12%, 9-11%,10-25%, 10-20%, or 10-15%, for example. In some aspects, dextranbackbone of an alpha-glucan graft copolymer can comprise (A) (i) about87-91.5 wt % glucose linked only at positions 1 and 6; (ii) about0.1-1.2 wt % glucose linked only at positions 1 and 3; (iii) about0.1-0.7 wt % glucose linked only at positions 1 and 4; (iv) about7.7-8.6 wt % glucose linked only at positions 1, 3 and 6; and (v) about0.4-1.7 wt % glucose linked only at: (a) positions 1, 2 and 6, or (b)positions 1, 4 and 6; or (B) (i) about 89.5-90.5 wt % glucose linkedonly at positions 1 and 6; (ii) about 0.4-0.9 wt % glucose linked onlyat positions 1 and 3; (iii) about 0.3-0.5 wt % glucose linked only atpositions 1 and 4; (iv) about 8.0-8.3 wt % glucose linked only atpositions 1, 3 and 6; and (v) about 0.7-1.4 wt % glucose linked only at:(a) positions 1, 2 and 6, or (b) positions 1, 4 and 6. The molecularweight of such a dextran backbone (or any other dextran backbone herein)can be about, or at least about, 0.1, 0.125, 0.15, 0.175, 0.2, 0.24,0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70,80, 90, 100, 110, 120, 130, 140, 150, 160, 170, 180, 190, 200, 0.1-0.2,0.125-0.175, 0.13-0.17, 0.135-0.165, 0.14-0.16, 0.145-0.155, 10-80,20-70, 30-60, 40-50, 50-200, 60-200, 70-200, 80-200, 90-200, 100-200,110-200, 120-200, 50-180, 60-180, 70-180, 80-180, 90-180, 100-180,110-180, 120-180, 50-160, 60-160, 70-160, 80-160, 90-160, 100-160,110-160, 120-160, 50-140, 60-140, 70-140, 80-140, 90-140, 100-140,110-140, 120-140, 50-120, 60-120, 70-120, 80-120, 90-120, 90-110,100-120, 110-120, 50-110, 60-110, 70-110, 80-110, 90-110, 100-110,50-100, 60-100, 70-100, 80-100, 90-100, or 95-105 million Daltons, forexample. Prior to entering a graft copolymer herein into hydrolysis step(b), a graft copolymer can be either soluble, partly soluble, orinsoluble. In some aspects, a graft copolymer is first treated with adextranase (e.g., any as disclosed in U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No.2017/0218093, which is incorporated herein by reference) to remove someof, or all of, the dextran backbone of the copolymer (e.g., about, or atleast about, 20%, 40%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 95%, or 99% by weight of thebackbone is removed) before entering the graft copolymer into hydrolysisstep (b). Optionally, this step can be conducted following hydrolysisstep (b).

The temperature of an enzymatic reaction for producing an insolublealpha-glucan precursor can be controlled, if desired, and can be about5-50° C., 20-40° C., 30-40° C., 20-30° C., 20-25° C., 20° C., 25° C.,30° C., 35° C., or 40° C., for example. An enzymatic reaction can beconducted for about, at least about, or up to about, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3,3.5, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72, 96, 120,144, 168, 1-4, 1-3.5, 1-3, 1.5-4, 1.5-3.5, 1.5-3, 2-4, 2-3.5, or 2-3hours, for example. The pH of an enzymatic reaction in some aspects canbe about 4.0, 4.5, 5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5, 7.0, 7.5, 8.0, 4.0-9.0, 4.0-8.5,4.0-8.0, 5.0-8.0, 5.5-7.5, or 5.5-6.5.

The initial concentration of sucrose in an enzymatic reaction forproducing an insoluble alpha-glucan precursor can be about, at leastabout, or less than about, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 80,90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 125, 150, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 10-50, 10-40,10-30, 10-25, 15-50, 15-40, 15-30, or 15-25 g/L, or a range between anytwo of these values. “Initial concentration of sucrose” refers to thesucrose concentration in a reaction composition just after all thereaction components have been added/combined (e.g., at least water,sucrose, glucosyltransferase enzyme).

In some aspects, an enzymatic reaction for producing an insolublealpha-glucan precursor can further comprise solublegluco-oligosaccharide byproducts from a previously performed enzymaticreaction that produced insoluble alpha-glucan with at least 50%alpha-1,3-linkages. For example, soluble fraction (e.g., filtrate,precipitate) obtained from an enzymatic reaction that produced insolublealpha-glucan with at least 50% (e.g., 95 or 99%) alpha-1,3-linkages canbe added to an enzymatic reaction herein for producing an insolublealpha-glucan precursor; such soluble fraction contains solublegluco-oligosaccharide byproducts. Various ways to apply this approachherein are disclosed in U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2018/0340199, whichis incorporated herein by reference.

Insoluble alpha-glucan precursor can optionally be isolated after itsenzymatic production (above), prior to conducting hydrolysis step (b).In some aspects, isolating insoluble alpha-glucan precursor can includeat least conducting a step of centrifugation, filtration, fractionation,chromatographic separation, dialysis, evaporation, or dilution.Isolation of insoluble alpha-glucan precursor can include at leastconducting a step of preparing a cake of insoluble alpha-glucanprecursor. Cake preparation can include at least conducting a step ofcentrifugation (cake is pelleted alpha-glucan) and/or filtration (cakeis filtered alpha-glucan), for example. Isolation can optionally furthercomprise washing the centrifuged and/or filtered insoluble alpha-glucanprecursor one, two, or more times with water or other aqueous liquid. Awash volume can optionally be at least about 10-100% of the volume ofthe reaction composition used to produce the alpha-glucan precursor.Washing can be done by various modes, as desired, such as bydisplacement or re-slurry washing. In some aspects, the aqueous portionof the resulting cake has no (detectable) dissolved sugars, or about, orless than about, 0.1-1.5, 0.1-1.25, 0.1-1.0, 0.1-0.75, 0.1-0.5, 0.2-0.6,0.3-0.5, 0.3-0.4, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, or 0.6 wt % dissolved sugars. Suchdissolved sugars can include sucrose, fructose, glucose, leucrose,and/or soluble gluco-oligosaccharides, for example. A cake of insolublealpha-glucan precursor herein can remain wet (“never-dried”), forexample, and in some aspects comprise (i) about 50%-90% by weight wateror aqueous solution, and (ii) about 10%-50% by weight insolublealpha-glucan precursor. A cake in some aspects can comprise about 10,11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28,29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 10-50, 10-40, 10-30,10-20, 20-50, 20-40, 20-30, 30-50, 30-40, 40-50, 30-45, 35-45,37.5-42.5, 35-40, or 40-45 wt % insoluble alpha-glucan precursor, forexample (with water or aqueous solution adding up to 100 wt %). In someaspects, the aqueous portion of a cake has a solute and/or pH profileaccording to that as described for an aqueous solution herein.

Isolation herein can optionally further comprise drying alpha-glucanprecursor, and/or preparing a dispersion of alpha-glucan precursor. Anisolated insoluble alpha-glucan precursor herein as provided in adry/dried form (optional) can comprise about, or no more than about, 12,10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.5, 1.0, 0.5, 0.25, 0.10, 0.05, or 0.01 wt %water, for example. Drying can be done using an oven, freeze drying,spray drying, and/or by agitated air drying (e.g., agitated filter/filmdrying such as that under vacuum, fluidized bed drying, rotary dryingsuch as drum drying). Drying in some aspects can be at a temperature ofabout, or at least about, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110,120, 130, 140, 20-140, 20-130, 30-50, 35-45, 90-110, or 95-105° C., forexample. A dispersion herein can comprise about 0.1, 0.25, 0.4, 0.5,0.75, 1.0, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2.0, 2.25, 2.5, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 6.0, 7.0,8.0, 9.0, 10, 0.5-10, 1-10, 2-10, 3-10, 4-10, or 5-10 wt % insolublealpha-glucan precursor in water or aqueous liquid, for example, and canbe a dispersion of either never-dried or dried alpha-glucan precursor.

Step (b) of a method of producing insoluble alpha-glucan particlesherein concerns hydrolyzing insoluble alpha-glucan precursor (above) toinsoluble alpha-glucan particles under aqueous conditions at a pH oftypically 2.0 or less. Dried or never-dried alpha-glucan precursor(above) can be entered into a hydrolysis reaction. In some aspects, adispersion herein is first prepared, after which its pH is loweredaccordingly to commence hydrolysis of insoluble alpha-glucan precursorto insoluble alpha-glucan of lower molecular weight.

The pH of a hydrolysis reaction herein can be 2.0 or less, for instance.In some aspects, the pH can be about, or less than about, 3.5, 3.0, 2.5,2.0, 1.5, 1.0, 0.8, 0.6, 0.5, 0.4, 0.3, 0.2, 0.1, 0.05, 0.03, 0.01, 0.0,0.0-2.0, 0.0-1.0, 0.0-0.5, 0.05-2.0, 0.05-1.0, 0.05-0.5, 0.1-2.0,0.1-1.0, or 0.1-0.5. A strong mineral acid such as hydrochloric acid,nitric acid, sulfuric acid, hydrobromic acid, hydroiodic acid, orperchloric acid, can be used accordingly to achieve a low pH asdisclosed in the foregoing. For example, mineral acid can be added to adispersion of insoluble alpha-glucan precursor until a desired pH isreached, thereby initiating a hydrolysis reaction. A hydrolysis reactionherein typically is performed under aqueous conditions, where the liquidof the reaction comprises a solvent that is water or an aqueous solutioncomprising at least about 60, 70, 80, 90, 95, 98, or 99 wt % water.However, in some alternative aspects, a hydrolysis reaction herein canbe conducted by exposing dry or moistened insoluble alpha-glucanprecursor to hydrochloric gas (e.g., at a pressure of about or up toabout 100 kPa).

The temperature of a hydrolysis reaction herein can be about, at leastabout, or less than about, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65,70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125, 130, 20-25, 20-30,40-130, 40-125, 40-120, 70-130, 70-125, 70-120, 80-130, 80-125, 80-120,60-100, 60-90, 70-100, 70-90, 75-100, 75-90, or 75-85° C., for example.

A hydrolysis reaction herein can proceed for about, at least about, orup to about, 1, 1.5, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 30, 36,42, 48, 60, 72, 96, 120, 144, 168, 192, 1-192, 1-120, 1-72, 6-192,6-120, 6-72, 8-192, 8-120, 8-72, 20-192, 20-120, or 20-72 hours, forexample. In some aspects, a hydrolysis reaction herein can proceed untilthe DPw of the hydrolyzed insoluble alpha-glucan is about 35-100 (e.g.,35-60, 40-60, 40-100), after which time the DPw no longer decreases(e.g., does not go below DPw 35 or 40). Typically, a hydrolysis reactionis agitated (e.g., stirred, shaken).

As desired, the pH of a hydrolysis reaction can be neutralized (e.g.,brought to pH 6-8) or otherwise raised above pH 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6following completion of the reaction. Neutralization typically can beaccomplished by adding a base such as a hydroxide (e.g., NaOH) orbicarbonate (e.g., NaHCO₃).

Insoluble alpha-glucan particle products of the reaction optionally canbe isolated (step c) (e.g., washed, dispersed, and/or dried) followingany of the above procedures regarding isolating/processing ofenzymatically synthesized insoluble alpha-glucan precursor. In someaspects, insoluble alpha-glucan particles that have been isolated(optionally characterized as “purified”) can be present in a compositionat a wt % (dry weight basis) of at least about 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 85%,90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 98.5%, 99%, 99.5%, 99.8%,or 99.9%. Such isolated insoluble alpha-glucan particles can be used asan ingredient/component in a product/application, for example.

The DPw or DPn of an insoluble alpha-glucan product of a hydrolysisreaction herein can be about 35-100, for example (or up to about 100,for example). In some aspects, its DPw or DPn can be about 35-100,35-90, 35-80, 35-70, 35-60, 35-55, 35-50, 40-100, 40-90, 40-80, 40-70,40-60, 40-55, 40-50, 45-100, 45-90, 45-80, 45-70, 45-60, 45-55, or45-50.

Any of the features disclosed herein for insoluble alpha-glucanparticles (e.g., glycosidic linkage profile, crystallinity, platecharacteristics and wt % content of plates, diameter, dispersionstability, dispersion viscosity, optical clarity, pigment extendercapacity) can likewise characterize an insoluble alpha-glucan product ofa hydrolysis method of the present disclosure.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure concern a method of providingan aqueous composition that comprises insoluble alpha-glucan particles.Such a method typically comprises (a) providing insoluble alpha-glucanparticles as presently disclosed, and (b) dispersing the particles intoan aqueous liquid, thereby producing an aqueous composition thatcomprises insoluble alpha-glucan particles. This method can optionallybe characterized as a dispersion method.

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles provided in step (a) of a dispersionmethod herein can be dry/dried or wet. A dry form of alpha-glucanparticles can comprise about, or no more than about, 12, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4,3, 2, 1.5, 1.0, 0.5, 0.25, 0.10, 0.05, or 0.01 wt % water, for example.A wet form of alpha-glucan particles can be a cake (filter cake, wetcake) in some aspects. A cake of insoluble alpha-glucan particles hereincan remain wet (“never-dried”), for example, and in some aspectscomprise (i) about 50%-90% by weight water or aqueous solution, and (ii)about 10%-50% by weight insoluble alpha-glucan particles. A cake in someaspects can comprise about 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20,21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38,39, 40, 10-50, 10-40, 10-30, 10-20, 20-50, 20-40, 20-30, 30-50, 30-40,40-50, 30-45, 35-45, 37.5-42.5, 35-40, or 40-45 wt % insolublealpha-glucan particles, for example (with water or aqueous solutionadding up to 100 wt %). In some aspects, the aqueous portion of a cakehas a solute and/or pH profile according to that as described for anaqueous solution herein.

Any suitable method can be employed to perform step (b) of dispersinginsoluble alpha-glucan particles. In some aspects, such dispersal can beperformed by applying high shear and/or other forms of mixing/agitation.High shear can be of about, or at least about, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12 kJ/kgin specific energy, and/or can comprise mixing at about, or up to about,3000, 4000, 6000, 8000, 10000, 12000, 14000, or 15000 rpm, for example.High shear and/or mixing/agitation can be applied for about 1, 2, 3, 4,5, 6, 8, or 10 minutes, or 2-4 minutes, for example. Suitable means forshearing/mixing/agitating include, for example, a disperser, sonicator(e.g., ultrasonicator) (e.g., 40-60 W, ˜50 W), homomixer, homogenizer(e.g., rotary or piston, rotar-stator), microfluidizer, planetary mixer,colloid mill, jet mill, vortex, and/or any methodology as described inInternational Patent Appl. Publ. No. WO2016/030234, U.S. Pat. Nos.5,767,176, 6,139,875 and 8,722,092, and U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. Nos.2017/0055540 and 2018/0021238, which are all incorporated herein byreference. In some aspects, high shear mixing (such as applied by any ofthe foregoing means) is not used to disperse insoluble alpha-glucanparticles to achieve elevated viscosity; gentle mixing/agitation such ata low rpm/frequency (e.g., less than about 100, 50, or 30 rpm) is usedto disperse the insoluble alpha-glucan particles in such aspects. Adispersion produced herein can optionally be a colloidal dispersion.

An aqueous composition produced by a dispersion method herein cancomprise about, at least about, or less than about, 0.1, 0.25, 0.4, 0.5,0.75, 1.0, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2.0, 2.25, 2.5, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 6.0, 7.0,8.0, 9.0, 10.0, 0.5-10, 1-10, 2-10, 3-10, 4-10, or 5-10 wt % insolublealpha-glucan particles, for example.

In some aspects, the viscosity of the aqueous composition produced instep (b) of a dispersion method is at least about 10%, 50%, 75%, 100%,500%, 1000%, 10000%, or 100000%, or 1000000% (or any integer between 10%and 100000%) higher than the viscosity of the aqueous liquid as itexisted before step (b) of dispersing. Very large percent increases inviscosity can be obtained with the disclosed method when the aqueousliquid has little to no viscosity before step (b). The viscosity of anaqueous composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles hereincan be about, or at least about, 2.5, 5, 10, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500,600, 700, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, 5000, 6000, 7000, 8000, 9000, 10000,or 15000 centipoise (cps), for example. Viscosity can be as measuredwith an aqueous composition at any temperature between about 3° C. toabout 80° C., for example (e.g., 4-30° C., 15-30° C., 15-25° C.).Viscosity typically is as measured at atmospheric pressure (about 760torr) or a pressure that is ±10% thereof. Viscosity can be measuredusing a viscometer or rheometer, for example, and can optionally be asmeasured at a shear rate (rotational shear rate) of about 0.1, 0.5, 1.0,1.667, 2, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000, 0.1-500, 0.1-100, 1.0-500,1.0-1000, or 1.0-100 s⁻¹ (1/s), for example. Viscosity can optionally bemeasured following the procedure outlined in the below Examples.

It is notable that dispersions of insoluble alpha-glucan particlesherein typically have enhanced viscosity (at any given shear rate)compared to insoluble alpha-glucan (e.g., non-hydrolyzed) of DPw >200(e.g., DPw ≥˜700 or ˜800), crystallinity <0.65 (e.g., ≤0.60), and/or D50diameter of 5-50 microns (where each polymer is provided in the sameamount). Such viscosity enhancement can be about, or at least about, a10-fold, 25-fold, 50-fold, 75-fold, 100-fold, or 125-fold increase inviscosity (at any given shear rate). It is notable that dispersions ofinsoluble alpha-glucan particles herein, whether at a neutral pH (e.g.,pH 6-8) or a low pH (e.g., pH 2 or 3), typically retain the same orsimilar (e.g., ±10%) viscosity profile/level (where polymer is providedin the same amount).

It is notable that dry insoluble alpha-glucan particles (e.g., dried atleast once following synthesis in hydrolysis reaction) and never-driedwet insoluble alpha-glucan particles (never dried following synthesis inhydrolysis reaction) herein are typically both able to increaseviscosity to the same or similar extent when dispersed in aqueousconditions (e.g., within about 10, 20, 30, 40, or 50% of the viscosityof the never-dried glucan dispersion), whereas insoluble alpha-glucan(e.g., non-hydrolyzed) of DPw >200 (e.g., DPw ≥˜700 or ˜800),crystallinity <0.65 (e.g., ≤0.60), and/or D50 diameter of 5-50 micronstypically does not exhibit this beneficial feature. When the latteralpha-glucan is dried at least once, it typically is not capable ofincreasing viscosity to the same or similar extent as its never-driedwet form (e.g., viscosity of dried glucan dispersion can be less than10%, 5%, 2.5%, 1%, 0.5%, or 0.1% of viscosity of never-dried glucandispersion).

It is notable that aqueous dispersions of insoluble alpha-glucanparticles herein typically have enhanced stability in that the particlesare able to remain dispersed following formation of the dispersion. Forexample, in an aqueous dispersion comprising insoluble alpha-glucanparticles herein, the particles are dispersed through about, or at leastabout, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 98%, 99%, or 100% of the volume of thedispersion. In some aspects, such a level of dispersion is contemplatedto be for a time (typically beginning from initial preparation of thedispersion) of about, at least about, or up to about, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6,8, 10, 20, 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 210, 240, 270, 300, 330, or 360days, or 1, 2, or 3 years, optionally at a temperature of about, or upto about, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 50, 60, 70, or 80° C., and/or at a pHof about, or up to about, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9 (any of thesevolume parameters and/or conditions can optionally also apply to stabledispersions and stable emulsions as defined above). In some aspects,stability can additionally or alternatively refer to the particleshaving an enhanced ability to provide viscosity to an aqueouscomposition (e.g., any of the above viscosity levels, optionally for anyof the above time periods), and/or maintain a molecular weight (DPw) asdisclosed above. In some aspects, dispersion of insoluble alpha-glucanparticles in an emulsion confers stability to the emulsion; for example,any of the above dispersal-volume percentages and/or times of suchstability can likewise characterize dispersed/emulsified droplets. Insome aspects, stability can additionally or alternatively characterizean emulsion in which the average emulsion droplet size is relativelysmall (e.g., about, or less than about, 40, 38, 36, 34, 32, 30, 28, 26,26-34, 26-32, 26-30, 28-34, 28-32, or 28-30 microns in diameter) andtypically uniform in size (e.g., standard deviation of average sizeabout, or less than about, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 5-10, 5-8,6-10, 6-8). A small average droplet size equates to an elevated totaldroplet surface area. In some aspects, stability can additionally oralternatively characterize an emulsion having an average storage modulus(Avg. G′) (also referred to as elastic modulus) of about, or at leastabout, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 125, 150, 40-150, 40-125, 40-100,50-150, 50-125, or 50-100 Pascals. The storage modulus of an emulsionherein can be measured according to the below Examples, or as disclosedin Varanasi et al. (2018, Frontiers Chem. 6:1-9, Article 409,incorporated herein by reference), for example. Based on the foregoingemulsion stabilizing effects of insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein,it is contemplated that the particles can be used in anapplication/product in which emulsion stabilization improves theperformance of the application/product (though such is not a requirementfor the particles to be used in the application/product). Examples ofsuch applications/products can be as disclosed herein, such asmilk/dairy products (e.g., yogurt, ice cream, cream), mayonnaise, saladdressings, beverages/tonics as carriers for delivering non-polarbioactive ingredients, cosmetic or pharmaceutical lotions/creams,waterborne/latex paints, defoaming formulations, rolling oils for metalworking, mining explosives, agrochemical formulations, downhole fluidssuch as for enhanced oil recovery operations, or pharmaceutical carrieror encapsulation systems.

An emulsion comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles in some aspectscan further comprise fibrids comprising alpha-glucan comprisingalpha-1,3 linkages. The linkage and/or molecular weight profile of thealpha-glucan of fibrids herein can be as disclosed herein for theinsoluble alpha-glucan particles. Alpha-glucan fibrids can be asdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Appl. Publ. No. 2018/0119357, for example, whichis incorporated herein by reference. In some aspects, including fibridsin an emulsion can have a synergistic effect with the insolubleparticles on emulsion stability. The concentration of fibrids in anemulsion of the disclosure can be any concentration as disclosed hereinfor insoluble alpha-glucan particles in an aqueous composition.

In some aspects, insoluble alpha-glucan particles as dispersed in aliquid such as water or an aqueous solution have a light-scatteringeffect on the liquid. For example, visible light can be scattered byabout, at least about, or up to about, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, 1.25,1.5, 1.75, 2.0, 2.25, 2.5, 2.75, or 3.0 arbitrary units (a.u.). Visiblelight in some aspects can have a wave-length of about 380-750, 380-700,380-650, 380-600, 380-550, 425-750, 425-700, 425-650, 425-600, 425-550,450-550, or 475-525 nm. The concentration of the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles as dispersed in a liquid for light scattering can be anyconcentration as disclosed herein, for example, or be at about, or atleast about, 0.05-10, 0.1-10, 1-10, 0.05-8, 0.1-8, or 1-8 wt %. Inadditional or other aspects, insoluble alpha-glucan particles asdispersed in a liquid do not absorb, or absorb very little (e.g., <1%,<0.1%), visible light that is radiated on the dispersion.

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles of the present disclosure can bepresent in a composition, such as an aqueous composition (e.g.,dispersion such as colloidal dispersion) or dry composition, at about,at least about, or less than about, 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.25, 0.3,0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.75, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.2, 1.25, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.75,1.8, 2.0, 2.25, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13,14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31,32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49,50, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68,69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86,87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, or 99 wt % or w/v %, forexample, or a range between any two of these values. The liquidcomponent of an aqueous composition can be an aqueous fluid such aswater or aqueous solution, for instance. The solvent of an aqueoussolution typically is water, or can comprise about, or at least about,10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 95, 98, or 99 wt % water, forexample.

An aqueous solution of an aqueous composition in some aspects has no(detectable) dissolved sugars, or about 0.1-1.5, 0.1-1.25, 0.1-1.0,0.1-0.75, 0.1-0.5, 0.2-0.6, 0.3-0.5, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, or 0.6 wt %dissolved sugars. Such dissolved sugars can include sucrose, fructose,leucrose, and/or soluble gluco-oligosaccharides, for example. An aqueoussolution of an aqueous composition in some aspects can have one or moresalts/buffers (e.g., Na⁺, Cl⁻, NaCl, phosphate, tris, citrate) (e.g.,0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, or 3.0 wt %) and/or a pH of about, or less thanabout, 0.0, 0.01, 0.03, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0,1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5, 7.0, 7.5, 8.0,8.5, 0.0-1.0, 0.0-2.0, 0.0-3.0, 0.0-4.0, 0.0-5.0, 9.0, 4.0-9.0, 4.0-8.5,4.0-8.0, 5.0-9.0, 5.0-8.5, 5.0-8.0, 6.0-9.0, 6.0-8.5, or 6.0-8.0, forexample. In some aspects, an aqueous composition comprising insolublealpha-glucan particles herein can be an acid hydrolysis reaction aspresently disclosed; the aqueous portion of the reaction has acorrespondingly low pH (as above).

An aqueous composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particlesherein (e.g., an aqueous dispersion) can have a viscosity of about, orat least about, 2.5, 5, 10, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 1000,2000, 3000, 4000, 5000, 6000, 7000, 8000, 9000, 10000, or 15000centipoise (cps), for example. Viscosity can be measured as disclosedabove or in the below Examples. Typically, insoluble alpha-glucanparticles in an aqueous dispersion are dispersed through about, or atleast about, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 98%, 99%, or 100% of the volume of thedispersion.

The temperature of a composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucanparticles herein (e.g., aqueous composition) can be about, or up toabout, 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80,85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125, 130, 5-50, 20-25, 20-30,20-40, 30-40, 40-130, 40-125, 40-120, 70-130, 70-125, 70-120, 80-130,80-125, 80-120, 60-100, 60-90, 70-100, 70-90, 75-100, 75-90, or 75-85°C., for example.

A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein can, insome aspects, be non-aqueous (e.g., a dry composition). Examples of suchembodiments include powders, granules, microcapsules, flakes, or anyother form of particulate matter. Other examples include largercompositions such as pellets, bars, kernels, beads, tablets, sticks, orother agglomerates. A non-aqueous or dry composition typically hasabout, or no more than about, 12, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.5, 1.0, 0.5,0.25, 0.10, 0.05, or 0.01 wt % water comprised therein. In some aspects(e.g., those directed to laundry or dish washing detergents), a drycomposition herein can be provided in a sachet or pouch.

A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein can, insome aspects, comprise one or more salts such as a sodium salt (e.g.,NaCl, Na₂SO₄). Other non-limiting examples of salts include those having(i) an aluminum, ammonium, barium, calcium, chromium (II or III), copper(I or II), iron (II or III), hydrogen, lead (II), lithium, magnesium,manganese (II or III), mercury (I or II), potassium, silver, sodiumstrontium, tin (II or IV), or zinc cation, and (ii) an acetate, borate,bromate, bromide, carbonate, chlorate, chloride, chlorite, chromate,cyanamide, cyanide, dichromate, dihydrogen phosphate, ferricyanide,ferrocyanide, fluoride, hydrogen carbonate, hydrogen phosphate, hydrogensulfate, hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen sulfite, hydride, hydroxide,hypochlorite, iodate, iodide, nitrate, nitride, nitrite, oxalate, oxide,perchlorate, permanganate, peroxide, phosphate, phosphide, phosphite,silicate, stannate, stannite, sulfate, sulfide, sulfite, tartrate, orthiocyanate anion. Thus, any salt having a cation from (i) above and ananion from (ii) above can be in a composition, for example. A salt canbe present in an aqueous composition herein at a wt % of about, or atleast about, 0.01, 0.025, 0.05, 0.075, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, 1.25,1.5, 1.75, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 0.01-3.5, 0.5-3.5, 0.5-2.5, or 0.5-1.5 wt% (such wt % values typically refer to the total concentration of one ormore salts), for example.

A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein canoptionally contain one or more active enzymes. Examples of suitableenzymes include proteases, cellulases, hemicellulases, peroxidases,lipolytic enzymes (e.g., metallolipolytic enzymes), xylanases, lipases,phospholipases, esterases (e.g., arylesterase, polyesterase),perhydrolases, cutinases, pectinases, pectate lyases, mannanases,keratinases, reductases, oxidases (e.g., choline oxidase),phenoloxidases, lipoxygenases, ligninases, pullulanases, tannases,pentosanases, malanases, beta-glucanases, arabinosidases,hyaluronidases, chondroitinases, laccases, metalloproteinases,amadoriases, glucoamylases, arabinofuranosidases, phytases, isomerases,transferases, nucleases, and amylases. If an enzyme(s) is included, itmay be comprised in a composition herein at about 0.0001-0.1 wt % (e.g.,0.01-0.03 wt %) active enzyme (e.g., calculated as pure enzyme protein),for example. In fabric care applications, an enzyme (e.g., any of theabove such as cellulase) can be present in an aqueous composition inwhich a fabric is treated (e.g., wash liquor) at a concentration that isminimally about 0.01-0.1 ppm total enzyme protein, or about 0.1-10 ppbtotal enzyme protein (e.g., less than 1 ppm), to maximally about 100,200, 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, or 5000 ppm total enzyme protein, forexample.

A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein, suchas an aqueous composition or a non-aqueous composition (above), can bein the form of a household care product, personal care product,industrial product, ingestible product (e.g., food product), orpharmaceutical product, for example. Examples of such products can be asdescribed in any of U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. Nos. 2018/0022834,2018/0237816, 2018/0230241, 20180079832, 2016/0311935, 2016/0304629,2015/0232785, 2015/0368594, 2015/0368595, 2016/0122445, 2019/0309096, or2019/0202942, or International Patent Appl. Publ. Nos. WO2016/133734 andWO2017/218391, which are all incorporated herein by reference. In someaspects, a composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles cancomprise at least one component/ingredient of a household care product,personal care product, industrial product, pharmaceutical product, oringestible product (e.g., food product) as disclosed in any of theforegoing publications and/or as presently disclosed.

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles disclosed herein are believed to beuseful for providing one or more of the following physical properties toa personal care product, pharmaceutical product, household product,industrial product, or ingestible product (e.g., food product):thickening, freeze/thaw stability, lubricity, moisture retention andrelease, texture, consistency, shape retention, emulsification, binding,suspension, dispersion, gelation, reduced mineral hardness, for example.Examples of a concentration or amount of insoluble alpha-glucanparticles in a product can be any of the weight percentages providedherein, for example.

Personal care products herein are not particularly limited and include,for example, skin care compositions, cosmetic compositions, antifungalcompositions, and antibacterial compositions. Personal care productsherein may be in the form of, for example, lotions, creams, pastes,balms, ointments, pomades, gels, liquids, combinations of these and thelike. The personal care products disclosed herein can include at leastone active ingredient, if desired. An active ingredient is generallyrecognized as an ingredient that causes an intended cosmetic orpharmacological effect.

In certain embodiments, a skin care product can be applied to skin foraddressing skin damage related to a lack of moisture. A skin careproduct may also be used to address the visual appearance of skin (e.g.,reduce the appearance of flaky, cracked, and/or red skin) and/or thetactile feel of the skin (e.g., reduce roughness and/or dryness of theskin while improved the softness and subtleness of the skin). A skincare product typically may include at least one active ingredient forthe treatment or prevention of skin ailments, providing a cosmeticeffect, or for providing a moisturizing benefit to skin, such as zincoxide, petrolatum, white petrolatum, mineral oil, cod liver oil,lanolin, dimethicone, hard fat, vitamin A, allantoin, calamine, kaolin,glycerin, or colloidal oatmeal, and combinations of these. A skin careproduct may include one or more natural moisturizing factors such asceramides, hyaluronic acid, glycerin, squalane, amino acids,cholesterol, fatty acids, triglycerides, phospholipids,glycosphingolipids, urea, linoleic acid, glycosaminoglycans,mucopolysaccharide, sodium lactate, or sodium pyrrolidone carboxylate,for example. Other ingredients that may be included in a skin careproduct include, without limitation, glycerides, apricot kernel oil,canola oil, squalane, squalene, coconut oil, corn oil, jojoba oil,jojoba wax, lecithin, olive oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, shea butter,soybean oil, sweet almond oil, sunflower oil, tea tree oil, shea butter,palm oil, cholesterol, cholesterol esters, wax esters, fatty acids, aloevera, and orange oil.

A personal care product herein can also be in the form of makeup,lipstick, mascara, rouge, foundation, blush, eyeliner, lip liner, lipgloss, other cosmetics, sunscreen, sun block, nail polish, nailconditioner, bath gel, shower gel, body wash, face wash, lip balm, skinconditioner, cold cream, moisturizer, body spray, soap, body scrub,exfoliant, astringent, scruffing lotion, depilatory, permanent wavingsolution, antidandruff formulation, antiperspirant composition,deodorant, shaving product, pre-shaving product, after-shaving product,cleanser, skin gel, rinse, dentifrice composition, toothpaste, ormouthwash, for example. An example of a personal care product (e.g., acleanser, soap, scrub, cosmetic) comprises a carrier or exfoliationagent (e.g., jojoba beads [jojoba ester beads]) (e.g., about 1-10, 3-7,4-6, or 5 wt %); such an agent may optionally be dispersed within theproduct.

A personal care product in some aspects can be a hair care product.Examples of hair care products herein include shampoo, hair conditioner(leave-in or rinse-out), cream rinse, hair dye, hair coloring product,hair shine product, hair serum, hair anti-frizz product, hair split-endrepair product, mousse, hair spray, and styling gel. A hair care productcan be in the form of a liquid, paste, gel, solid, or powder in someembodiments. A hair care product as presently disclosed typicallycomprises one or more of the following ingredients, which are generallyused to formulate hair care products: anionic surfactants such aspolyoxyethylenelauryl ether sodium sulfate; cationic surfactants such asstearyltrimethylammonium chloride and/or distearyltrimethylammoniumchloride; nonionic surfactants such as glyceryl monostearate, sorbitanmonopalmitate and/or polyoxyethylenecetyl ether; wetting agents such aspropylene glycol, 1,3-butylene glycol, glycerin, sorbitol, pyroglutamicacid salts, amino acids and/or trimethylglycine; hydrocarbons such asliquid paraffins, petrolatum, solid paraffins, squalane and/or olefinoligomers; higher alcohols such as stearyl alcohol and/or cetyl alcohol;superfatting agents; antidandruff agents; disinfectants;anti-inflammatory agents; crude drugs; water-soluble polymers such asmethyl cellulose, hydroxycellulose and/or partially deacetylated chitin;antiseptics such as paraben; ultra-violet light absorbers; pearlingagents; pH adjustors; perfumes; and pigments.

A pharmaceutical product herein can be in the form of an emulsion,liquid, elixir, gel, suspension, solution, cream, or ointment, forexample. Also, a pharmaceutical product herein can be in the form of anyof the personal care products disclosed herein, such as an antibacterialor antifungal composition. A pharmaceutical product can further compriseone or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers, diluents, and/orpharmaceutically acceptable salts. Insoluble alpha-glucan particlesdisclosed herein can also be used in capsules, beads, pastilles,encapsulants, tablets, tablet coatings, and as an excipients formedicaments and drugs.

A composition herein comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles can bean encapsulant, for instance. An encapsulant can be used for controllingthe release of, and/or protecting, the material and/or activeagent(s)/compound(s) held within the encapsulant, for instance. Anencapsulant herein can encapsulate a fragrance (e.g., any as disclosedin U.S. Pat. No. 7,196,049, which is incorporated herein by reference),ingestible product (e.g., food, beverage, a flavor such as disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 7,022,352, which is incorporated herein by reference),pharmaceutical or health product (e.g., liquid drug, prebiotic,probiotic), personal care product (e.g., toothpaste, mouth wash,face/body cream), household care product (e.g., dry or liquid detergent,bleach). Any suitable composition/product disclosed elsewhere herein(with or without alpha-glucan particles), or as disclosed in U.S. PatentAppl. Publ. Nos. 2009/0209661 or 2007/0148105 (each incorporated hereinby reference, e.g., consumer product) can be encapsulated, for example.In some aspects, an encapsulant herein can encapsulate a hydrophobic ornon-polar composition; a hydrophobic or non-polar composition cancomprise a lipid (e.g., oil, essential oil, fat, wax, free fatty acids,glycerol, phospholipids, sterols, triglycerides, diglycerides,monoglycerides), alkane, alkene/olefin, a hydrophobic aromatic or cycliccompound, a hydrophobic aroma compound, and/or a hydrophobic flavorantor nutrient, for example. An encapsulated product herein can be in a dryform in some aspects. An encapsulant in some cases can have acomposition/formulation, and/or thickness, that is the same as, orsimilar to, that of a film or coating herein, where such film or coatingis suitable for use as an encapsulant. An encapsulant can compriseabout, or at least about, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96,97, 98, 99, or 100 wt % insoluble alpha-glucan particles, for example.This and/or other encapsulants herein can further comprise, in someaspects, polyurethane, poly acrylate, poly lactic acid, polysaccharide(in addition to the alpha-glucan particles), gelatin, melamine, and/orformaldehyde. One or more additional additives can optionally beincluded that alter the mechanical, thermal, and/or degradation profileof an encapsulant herein.

In some aspects, an encapsulated composition as presently disclosed canbe produced by a method comprising: (a) providing a liquid emulsioncomprising at least insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan herein, water and aliquid/compound that is immiscible in water (e.g., any hydrophobic ornon-polar substance disclosed herein), and (b) removing all or most(≥88%, 90%, 95%, 98%, 99%, 99.5%, 99.9% by weight) of the water from theemulsion. Such removal can comprise drying such as by freeze-drying orspray-drying. A liquid emulsion can be provided in an encapsulationmethod, for example, by mixing and/or homogenizing the foregoingemulsion components. In some aspects, the temperature of the mixture tobe emulsified is increased to aid emulsification. For example, thetemperature can be raised in order to liquify/melt a non-water component(immiscible component), such as a component that is solid at roomtemperature (e.g., the temperature is raised at least 1 or 2° C. abovethe melting point of the immiscible component), thereby providing theliquid/compound that is immiscible in water. The increased temperatureof the emulsification is typically maintained until the point ofentering the emulsification to the drying step. In an encapsulationmethod herein, it should be understood that, regarding the product ofthe method, the liquid/compound (or solid, as the case may be, dependingon melting point) that is immiscible in water is encapsulated by acomposition comprising insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan. Conditions (e.g.,temperature, pressure, time, and/or air flow rate) for preparing anencapsulated product herein, such as by freeze-drying or spray-drying,can be the same as, or similar to (e.g., within 5%, 10%, 15%, or 20% ofthe stated values), the values disclosed below in Example 7, forexample. In some alternative aspects of an encapsulation method of thepresent disclosure, the alpha-1,3-glucan can be in the form of analpha-glucan precursor herein.

A household and/or industrial product herein can be in the form ofdrywall tape-joint compounds; mortars; grouts; cement plasters; sprayplasters; cement stucco; adhesives; pastes; wall/ceiling texturizers;binders and processing aids for tape casting, extrusion forming,injection molding and ceramics; spray adherents andsuspending/dispersing aids for pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers;fabric care products such as fabric softeners and laundry detergents;hard surface cleaners; air fresheners; polymer emulsions; latex; gelssuch as water-based gels; surfactant solutions; paints such aswater-based paints; protective coatings; adhesives; sealants and caulks;inks such as water-based ink; metal-working fluids; films or coatings;or emulsion-based metal cleaning fluids used in electroplating,phosphatizing, galvanizing and/or general metal cleaning operations, forexample.

Examples of ingestible products herein include a food, beverage, animalfeed, an animal health and/or nutrition product, and/or pharmaceuticalproduct. The intended use of insoluble alpha-glucan particles aspresently disclosed in an ingestible product can be to provide texture,add volume, and/or thicken, for example.

Further examples of using insoluble alpha-glucan particles of thepresent disclosure for ingestible products include use as: a bulking,binding and/or coating ingredient; a carrier for coloring agents,flavors/fragrances, and/or high intensity sweeteners; a spray dryingadjunct; a bulking, bodying, dispersing and/or emulsification agent; andan ingredient for promoting moisture retention (humectant). Illustrativeexamples of products that can be prepared having insoluble alpha-glucanparticles herein include food products, beverage products,pharmaceutical products, nutritional products, and sports products.Examples of beverage products herein include concentrated beveragemixes, carbonated beverages, non-carbonated beverages, fruit-flavoredbeverages, fruit juices, teas, coffee, milk nectars, powdered drinks,liquid concentrates, milk drinks, ready-to-drink (RTD) products,smoothies, alcoholic beverages, flavored waters and combinationsthereof. Examples of food products herein include baked goods (e.g.,breads), confectioneries, frozen dairy products, meats,artificial/synthetic/cultured meat, cereal products (e.g., breakfastcereals), dairy products (e.g., yogurt), condiments (e.g., mustard,ketchup, mayonnaise), snack bars, soups, dressings, mixes, preparedfoods, baby foods, diet preparations, peanut butter, syrups, sweeteners,food coatings, pet food, animal feed, animal health and nutritionproducts, dried fruit, sauces, gravies, jams/jellies, dessert products,spreads, batters, breadings, spice mixes, frostings and the like. Insome aspects, insoluble alpha-glucan particles can provide or enhancethe foaming of beverages such as dairy beverages, non-dairy alternativebeverages (e.g., “vegan” milk such as soy milk, almond milk, or coconutmilk), dairy creamers, and/or non-dairy creamers (e.g., for a hotbeverage such as coffee [e.g., cappuccino], tea [e.g., chai tea]).

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles disclosed herein can be comprised in apersonal care product, pharmaceutical product, household product,industrial product, or ingestible product (e.g., food product) in anamount that provides a desired degree of thickening and/or dispersion,for example. Examples of a concentration or amount of insolublealpha-glucan particles in a product are any of the weight percentagesprovided above.

Compositions disclosed herein can be in the form of a detergentcomposition such as a fabric care composition. A fabric care compositionherein can be used for hand wash, machine wash and/or other purposessuch as soaking and/or pretreatment of fabrics, for example. A fabriccare composition may take the form of, for example, a laundry detergent;fabric conditioner; any wash-, rinse-, or dryer-added product; unit doseor spray. Fabric care compositions in a liquid form may be in the formof an aqueous composition as disclosed herein. In other aspects, afabric care composition can be in a dry form such as a granulardetergent or dryer-added fabric softener sheet. Other non-limitingexamples of fabric care compositions herein include: granular orpowder-form all-purpose or heavy-duty washing agents; liquid, gel orpaste-form all-purpose or heavy-duty washing agents; liquid or dryfine-fabric (e.g. delicates) detergents; cleaning auxiliaries such asbleach additives, “stain-stick”, or pre-treatments; substrate-ladenproducts such as dry and wetted wipes, pads, or sponges; sprays andmists.

A detergent composition herein may be in any useful form, e.g., aspowders, granules, pastes, bars, unit dose, or liquid. A liquiddetergent may be aqueous, typically containing up to about 70 wt % ofwater and 0 wt % to about 30 wt % of organic solvent. It may also be inthe form of a compact gel type containing only about 30 wt % water.

A detergent composition herein typically comprises one or moresurfactants, wherein the surfactant is selected from nonionicsurfactants, anionic surfactants, cationic surfactants, ampholyticsurfactants, zwitterionic surfactants, semi-polar nonionic surfactantsand mixtures thereof. In some embodiments, the surfactant is present ata level of from about 0.1% to about 60%, while in alternativeembodiments the level is from about 1% to about 50%, while in stillfurther embodiments the level is from about 5% to about 40%, by weightof the detergent composition. A detergent will usually contain 0 wt % toabout 50 wt % of an anionic surfactant such as linearalkylbenzenesulfonate (LAS), alpha-olefinsulfonate (AOS), alkyl sulfate(fatty alcohol sulfate) (AS), alcohol ethoxysulfate (AEOS or AES),secondary alkanesulfonates (SAS), alpha-sulfo fatty acid methyl esters,alkyl- or alkenylsuccinic acid, or soap. In addition, a detergentcomposition may optionally contain 0 wt % to about 40 wt % of a nonionicsurfactant such as alcohol ethoxylate (AEO or AE), carboxylated alcoholethoxylates, nonylphenol ethoxylate, alkylpolyglycoside,alkyldimethylamineoxide, ethoxylated fatty acid monoethanolamide, fattyacid monoethanolamide, or polyhydroxy alkyl fatty acid amide (asdescribed for example in WO92/06154, which is incorporated herein byreference).

A detergent composition herein typically comprises one or more detergentbuilders or builder systems. In some aspects, oxidized alpha-1,3-glucancan be included as a co-builder, in which it is used together with oneor more additional builders such as any disclosed herein. Oxidizedalpha-1,3-glucan compounds for use herein are disclosed in U.S. PatentAppl. Publ. No. 2015/0259439. In some embodiments incorporating at leastone builder, the cleaning compositions comprise at least about 1%, fromabout 3% to about 60%, or even from about 5% to about 40%, builder byweight of the composition. Builders (in addition to oxidizedalpha-1,3-glucan) include, but are not limited to, alkali metal,ammonium and alkanolammonium salts of polyphosphates, alkali metalsilicates, alkaline earth and alkali metal carbonates, aluminosilicates,polycarboxylate compounds, ether hydroxypolycarboxylates, copolymers ofmaleic anhydride with ethylene or vinyl methyl ether, 1, 3, 5-trihydroxybenzene-2, 4, 6-trisulphonic acid, and carboxymethyloxysuccinic acid,various alkali metal, ammonium and substituted ammonium salts ofpolyacetic acids such as ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid andnitrilotriacetic acid, as well as polycarboxylates such as melliticacid, succinic acid, citric acid, oxydisuccinic acid, polymaleic acid,benzene 1,3,5-tricarboxylic acid, carboxymethyloxysuccinic acid, andsoluble salts thereof. Indeed, it is contemplated that any suitablebuilder will find use in various embodiments of the present disclosure.Additional examples of a detergent builder or complexing agent includezeolite, diphosphate, triphosphate, phosphonate, citrate,nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA),diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTMPA), alkyl- or alkenylsuccinicacid, soluble silicates or layered silicates (e.g., SKS-6 from Hoechst).

In some embodiments, builders form water-soluble hardness ion complexes(e.g., sequestering builders), such as citrates and polyphosphates(e.g., sodium tripolyphosphate and sodium tripolyphospate hexahydrate,potassium tripolyphosphate, and mixed sodium and potassiumtripolyphosphate, etc.). It is contemplated that any suitable builderwill find use in the present disclosure, including those known in theart (See, e.g., EP2100949).

In some embodiments, suitable builders can include phosphate buildersand non-phosphate builders. In some embodiments, a builder is aphosphate builder. In some embodiments, a builder is a non-phosphatebuilder. A builder can be used in a level of from 0.1% to 80%, or from5% to 60%, or from 10% to 50%, by weight of the composition. In someembodiments, the product comprises a mixture of phosphate andnon-phosphate builders. Suitable phosphate builders includemono-phosphates, di-phosphates, tri-polyphosphates oroligomeric-polyphosphates, including the alkali metal salts of thesecompounds, including the sodium salts. In some embodiments, a buildercan be sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP). Additionally, the composition cancomprise carbonate and/or citrate, preferably citrate that helps toachieve a neutral pH composition. Other suitable non-phosphate buildersinclude homopolymers and copolymers of polycarboxylic acids and theirpartially or completely neutralized salts, monomeric polycarboxylicacids and hydroxycarboxylic acids and their salts. In some embodiments,salts of the above mentioned compounds include ammonium and/or alkalimetal salts, i.e., lithium, sodium, and potassium salts, includingsodium salts. Suitable polycarboxylic acids include acyclic, alicyclic,hetero-cyclic and aromatic carboxylic acids, wherein in someembodiments, they can contain at least two carboxyl groups which are ineach case separated from one another by, in some instances, no more thantwo carbon atoms.

A detergent composition herein can comprise at least one chelatingagent. Suitable chelating agents include, but are not limited to copper,iron and/or manganese chelating agents and mixtures thereof. Inembodiments in which at least one chelating agent is used, thecomposition comprises from about 0.1% to about 15%, or even from about3.0% to about 10%, chelating agent by weight of the composition.

A detergent composition herein can comprise at least one deposition aid.Suitable deposition aids include, but are not limited to, polyethyleneglycol, polypropylene glycol, polycarboxylate, soil release polymerssuch as polytelephthalic acid, clays such as kaolinite, montmorillonite,atapulgite, illite, bentonite, halloysite, and mixtures thereof.

A detergent composition herein can comprise one or more dye transferinhibiting agents. Suitable polymeric dye transfer inhibiting agentsinclude, but are not limited to, polyvinylpyrrolidone polymers,polyamine N-oxide polymers, copolymers of N-vinylpyrrolidone andN-vinylimidazole, polyvinyloxazolidones and polyvinylimidazoles ormixtures thereof. Additional dye transfer inhibiting agents includemanganese phthalocyanine, peroxidases, polyvinylpyrrolidone polymers,polyamine N-oxide polymers, copolymers of N-vinylpyrrolidone andN-vinylimidazole, polyvinyloxazolidones and polyvinylimidazoles and/ormixtures thereof; chelating agents examples of which includeethylene-diamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA); diethylene triamine pentamethylene phosphonic acid (DTPMP); hydroxy-ethane diphosphonic acid(HEDP); ethylenediamine N,N′-disuccinic acid (EDDS); methyl glycinediacetic acid (MGDA); diethylene triamine penta acetic acid (DTPA);propylene diamine tetraacetic acid (PDT A); 2-hydroxypyridine-N-oxide(HPNO); or methyl glycine diacetic acid (MGDA); glutamic acidN,N-diacetic acid (N,N-dicarboxymethyl glutamic acid tetrasodium salt(GLDA); nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA); 4,5-dihydroxy-m-benzenedisulfonicacid; citric acid and any salts thereof; N-hydroxyethylethylenediaminetri-acetic acid (HEDTA), triethylenetetraaminehexaaceticacid (TTHA), N-hydroxyethyliminodiacetic acid (HEIDA),dihydroxyethylglycine (DHEG), ethylenediaminetetrapropionic acid (EDTP)and derivatives thereof, which can be used alone or in combination withany of the above. In embodiments in which at least one dye transferinhibiting agent is used, a composition herein may comprise from about0.0001% to about 10%, from about 0.01% to about 5%, or even from about0.1% to about 3%, by weight of the composition.

A detergent composition herein can comprise silicates. In some of theseembodiments, sodium silicates (e.g., sodium disilicate, sodiummetasilicate, and/or crystalline phyllosilicates) find use. In someembodiments, silicates are present at a level of from about 1% to about20% by weight of the composition. In some embodiments, silicates arepresent at a level of from about 5% to about 15% by weight of thecomposition.

A detergent composition herein can comprise dispersants. Suitablewater-soluble organic materials include, but are not limited to thehomo- or co-polymeric acids or their salts, in which the polycarboxylicacid comprises at least two carboxyl radicals separated from each otherby not more than two carbon atoms.

A detergent composition herein may additionally comprise one or moreenzymes as disclosed above, for example. In some aspects, a detergentcomposition can comprise one or more enzymes, each at a level from about0.00001% to about 10% by weight of the composition and the balance ofcleaning adjunct materials by weight of composition. In some otheraspects, a detergent composition can also comprise each enzyme at alevel of about 0.0001% to about 10%, about 0.001% to about 5%, about0.001% to about 2%, or about 0.005% to about 0.5%, by weight of thecomposition. Enzymes comprised in a detergent composition herein may bestabilized using conventional stabilizing agents, e.g., a polyol such aspropylene glycol or glycerol; a sugar or sugar alcohol; lactic acid;boric acid or a boric acid derivative (e.g., an aromatic borate ester).

A detergent composition in some aspects may comprise one or more othertypes of polymer in addition to insoluble alpha-glucan particles asdisclosed herein. Examples of other types of polymers useful hereininclude carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), dextran, poly(vinylpyrrolidone)(PVP), polyethylene glycol (PEG), poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA),polycarboxylates such as polyacrylates, maleic/acrylic acid copolymersand lauryl methacrylate/acrylic acid copolymers.

A detergent composition herein may contain a bleaching system. Forexample, a bleaching system can comprise an H₂O₂ source such asperborate or percarbonate, which may be combined with a peracid-formingbleach activator such as tetraacetylethylenediamine (TAED) ornonanoyloxybenzenesulfonate (NOBS). Alternatively, a bleaching systemmay comprise peroxyacids (e.g., amide, imide, or sulfone typeperoxyacids). Alternatively still, a bleaching system can be anenzymatic bleaching system comprising perhydrolase, for example, such asthe system described in WO2005/056783.

A detergent composition herein may also contain conventional detergentingredients such as fabric conditioners, clays, foam boosters, sudssuppressors, anti-corrosion agents, soil-suspending agents, anti-soilredeposition agents, dyes, bactericides, tarnish inhibiters, opticalbrighteners, or perfumes. The pH of a detergent composition herein(measured in aqueous solution at use concentration) is usually neutralor alkaline (e.g., pH of about 7.0 to about 11.0).

It is believed that insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein can beincluded as an anti-redeposition agent and/or clay soil removal agent ina detergent composition such as a fabric care composition, if desired(such agents can optionally be characterized as whiteness maintenanceagents in certain aspects). Examples of other suitable anti-redepositionand/or clay soil removal agents herein include polyethoxy zwitterionicsurfactants, water-soluble copolymers of acrylic or methacrylic acidwith acrylic or methacrylic acid-ethylene oxide condensates (e.g., U.S.Pat. No. 3,719,647), cellulose derivatives such ascarboxymethylcellulose and hydroxypropylcellulose (e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos.3,597,416 and 3,523,088), and mixtures comprising nonionic alkylpolyethoxy surfactant, polyethoxy alkyl quaternary cationic surfactantand fatty amide surfactant (e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,228,044). Non-limitingexamples of other suitable anti-redeposition and clay soil removalagents are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,597,898 and 4,891,160, andInternational Patent Appl. Publ. No. WO95/32272, all of which areincorporated herein by reference.

Particular forms of detergent compositions that can be adapted forpurposes disclosed herein are disclosed in, for example,US20090209445A1, US20100081598A1, U.S. Pat. No. 7,001,878B2,EP1504994B1, WO2001085888A2, WO2003089562A1, WO2009098659A1,WO2009098660A1, WO2009112992A1, WO2009124160A1, WO2009152031A1,WO2010059483A1, WO2010088112A1, WO2010090915A1, WO2010135238A1,WO2011094687A1, WO2011094690A1, WO2011127102A1, WO2011163428A1,WO2008000567A1, WO2006045391A1, WO2006007911A1, WO2012027404A1,EP1740690B1, WO2012059336A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,730,646B1, WO2008087426A1,WO2010116139A1, and WO2012104613A1, all of which are incorporated hereinby reference.

Laundry detergent compositions herein can optionally be heavy duty (allpurpose) laundry detergent compositions. Exemplary heavy duty laundrydetergent compositions comprise a detersive surfactant (10%-40% wt/wt),including an anionic detersive surfactant (selected from a group oflinear or branched or random chain, substituted or unsubstituted alkylsulphates, alkyl sulphonates, alkyl alkoxylated sulphate, alkylphosphates, alkyl phosphonates, alkyl carboxylates, and/or mixturesthereof), and optionally non-ionic surfactant (selected from a group oflinear or branched or random chain, substituted or unsubstituted alkylalkoxylated alcohol, e.g., C8-C18 alkyl ethoxylated alcohols and/orC6-C12 alkyl phenol alkoxylates), where the weight ratio of anionicdetersive surfactant (with a hydrophilic index (HIc) of from 6.0 to 9)to non-ionic detersive surfactant is greater than 1:1. Suitabledetersive surfactants also include cationic detersive surfactants(selected from a group of alkyl pyridinium compounds, alkyl quaternaryammonium compounds, alkyl quaternary phosphonium compounds, alkylternary sulphonium compounds, and/or mixtures thereof); zwitterionicand/or amphoteric detersive surfactants (selected from a group ofalkanolamine sulpho-betaines); ampholytic surfactants; semi-polarnon-ionic surfactants and mixtures thereof.

A detergent herein such as a heavy duty laundry detergent compositionmay optionally include, a surfactancy boosting polymer consisting ofamphiphilic alkoxylated grease cleaning polymers (selected from a groupof alkoxylated polymers having branched hydrophilic and hydrophobicproperties, such as alkoxylated polyalkylenimines in the range of 0.05wt %-10 wt %) and/or random graft polymers (typically comprising ofhydrophilic backbone comprising monomers selected from the groupconsisting of: unsaturated C1-C6 carboxylic acids, ethers, alcohols,aldehydes, ketones, esters, sugar units, alkoxy units, maleic anhydride,saturated polyalcohols such as glycerol, and mixtures thereof; andhydrophobic side chain(s) selected from the group consisting of: C4-C25alkyl group, polypropylene, polybutylene, vinyl ester of a saturatedC1-C6 mono-carboxylic acid, C1-C6 alkyl ester of acrylic or methacrylicacid, and mixtures thereof.

A detergent herein such as a heavy duty laundry detergent compositionmay optionally include additional polymers such as soil release polymers(include anionically end-capped polyesters, for example SRP1, polymerscomprising at least one monomer unit selected from saccharide,dicarboxylic acid, polyol and combinations thereof, in random or blockconfiguration, ethylene terephthalate-based polymers and co-polymersthereof in random or block configuration, for example REPEL-O-TEX SF,SF-2 AND SRP6, TEXCARE SRA100, SRA300, SRN100, SRN170, SRN240, SRN300AND SRN325, MARLOQUEST SL), anti-redeposition agent(s) herein (0.1 wt %to 10 wt %), include carboxylate polymers, such as polymers comprisingat least one monomer selected from acrylic acid, maleic acid (or maleicanhydride), fumaric acid, itaconic acid, aconitic acid, mesaconic acid,citraconic acid, methylenemalonic acid, and any mixture thereof,vinylpyrrolidone homopolymer, and/or polyethylene glycol, molecularweight in the range of from 500 to 100,000 Da); and polymericcarboxylate (such as maleate/acrylate random copolymer or polyacrylatehomopolymer).

A detergent herein such as a heavy duty laundry detergent compositionmay optionally further include saturated or unsaturated fatty acids,preferably saturated or unsaturated C12-C24 fatty acids (0 wt % to 10 wt%); deposition aids (examples for which include polysaccharides,cellulosic polymers, poly diallyl dimethyl ammonium halides (DADMAC),and co-polymers of DAD MAC with vinyl pyrrolidone, acrylamides,imidazoles, imidazolinium halides, and mixtures thereof, in random orblock configuration, cationic guar gum, cationic starch, cationicpolyacrylamides, and mixtures thereof.

A detergent herein such as a heavy duty laundry detergent compositionmay optionally further include dye transfer inhibiting agents, examplesof which include manganese phthalocyanine, peroxidases,polyvinylpyrrolidone polymers, polyamine N-oxide polymers, copolymers ofN-vinylpyrrolidone and N-vinylimidazole, polyvinyloxazolidones andpolyvinylimidazoles and/or mixtures thereof; chelating agents, examplesof which include ethylene-diamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA), diethylenetriamine penta methylene phosphonic acid (DTPMP), hydroxy-ethanediphosphonic acid (HEDP), ethylenediamine N,N′-disuccinic acid (EDDS),methyl glycine diacetic acid (MGDA), diethylene triamine penta aceticacid (DTPA), propylene diamine tetraacetic acid (PDTA),2-hydroxypyridine-N-oxide (HPNO), or methyl glycine diacetic acid(MGDA), glutamic acid N,N-diacetic acid (N,N-dicarboxymethyl glutamicacid tetrasodium salt (GLDA), nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA),4,5-dihydroxy-m-benzenedisulfonic acid, citric acid and any saltsthereof, N-hydroxyethylethylenediaminetriacetic acid (HEDTA),triethylenetetraaminehexaacetic acid (TTHA), N-hydroxyethyliminodiaceticacid (HEIDA), dihydroxyethylglycine (DHEG),ethylenediaminetetrapropionic acid (EDTP), and derivatives thereof.

A detergent herein such as a heavy duty laundry detergent compositionmay optionally include silicone or fatty-acid based suds suppressors;hueing dyes, calcium and magnesium cations, visual signalingingredients, anti-foam (0.001 wt % to about 4.0 wt %), and/or astructurant/thickener (0.01 wt % to 5 wt %) selected from the groupconsisting of diglycerides and triglycerides, ethylene glycoldistearate, microcrystalline cellulose, microfiber cellulose,biopolymers, xanthan gum, gellan gum, and mixtures thereof). Suchstructurant/thickener would be, in some aspects, in addition to theinsoluble alpha-glucan particles comprised in the detergent. Astructurant can also be referred to as a structural agent.

A detergent herein can be in the form of a heavy duty dry/solid laundrydetergent composition, for example. Such a detergent may include: (i) adetersive surfactant, such as any anionic detersive surfactant disclosedherein, any non-ionic detersive surfactant disclosed herein, anycationic detersive surfactant disclosed herein, any zwitterionic and/oramphoteric detersive surfactant disclosed herein, any ampholyticsurfactant, any semi-polar non-ionic surfactant, and mixtures thereof;(ii) a builder, such as any phosphate-free builder (e.g., zeolitebuilders in the range of 0 wt % to less than 10 wt %), any phosphatebuilder (e.g., sodium tri-polyphosphate in the range of 0 wt % to lessthan 10 wt %), citric acid, citrate salts and nitrilotriacetic acid, anysilicate salt (e.g., sodium or potassium silicate or sodiummeta-silicate in the range of 0 wt % to less than 10 wt %); anycarbonate salt (e.g., sodium carbonate and/or sodium bicarbonate in therange of 0 wt % to less than 80 wt %), and mixtures thereof; (iii) ableaching agent, such as any photobleach (e.g., sulfonated zincphthalocyanines, sulfonated aluminum phthalocyanines, xanthenes dyes,and mixtures thereof), any hydrophobic or hydrophilic bleach activator(e.g., dodecanoyl oxybenzene sulfonate, decanoyl oxybenzene sulfonate,decanoyl oxybenzoic acid or salts thereof, 3,5,5-trimethy hexanoyloxybenzene sulfonate, tetraacetyl ethylene diamine-TAED,nonanoyloxybenzene sulfonate-NOBS, nitrile quats, and mixtures thereof),any source of hydrogen peroxide (e.g., inorganic perhydrate salts,examples of which include mono or tetra hydrate sodium salt ofperborate, percarbonate, persulfate, perphosphate, or persilicate), anypreformed hydrophilic and/or hydrophobic peracids (e.g., percarboxylicacids and salts, percarbonic acids and salts, perimidic acids and salts,peroxymonosulfuric acids and salts, and mixtures thereof); and/or (iv)any other components such as a bleach catalyst (e.g., imine bleachboosters examples of which include iminium cations and polyions, iminiumzwitterions, modified amines, modified amine oxides, N-sulphonyl imines,N-phosphonyl imines, N-acyl imines, thiadiazole dioxides,perfluoroimines, cyclic sugar ketones, and mixtures thereof), and ametal-containing bleach catalyst (e.g., copper, iron, titanium,ruthenium, tungsten, molybdenum, or manganese cations along with anauxiliary metal cations such as zinc or aluminum and a sequestrate suchas EDTA, ethylenediaminetetra(methylenephosphonic acid).

A detergent herein such as that for fabric care (e.g., laundry) can becomprised in a unit dose (e.g., sachet or pouch), for example. A unitdose form can comprise a water-soluble outer film that completelyenvelopes a liquid or solid detergent composition. A unit dose cancomprise a single compartment, or at least two, three, or more(multiple) compartments. Multiple compartments can be arranged in asuperposed orientation or a side-by-side orientation. A unit dose hereinis typically a closed structure of any form/shape suitable for holdingand protecting its contents without allowing contents release prior tocontact with water.

Compositions disclosed herein can be in the form of a dishwashingdetergent composition, for example. Examples of dishwashing detergentsinclude automatic dishwashing detergents (typically used in dishwashermachines) and hand-washing dish detergents. A dishwashing detergentcomposition can be in any dry or liquid/aqueous form as disclosedherein, for example. Components that may be included in certainembodiments of a dishwashing detergent composition include, for example,one or more of a phosphate; oxygen- or chlorine-based bleaching agent;non-ionic surfactant; alkaline salt (e.g., metasilicates, alkali metalhydroxides, sodium carbonate); any active enzyme disclosed herein;anti-corrosion agent (e.g., sodium silicate); anti-foaming agent;additives to slow down the removal of glaze and patterns from ceramics;perfume; anti-caking agent (in granular detergent); starch (intablet-based detergents); gelling agent (in liquid/gel baseddetergents); and/or sand (powdered detergents).

Dishwashing detergents such as an automatic dishwasher detergent orliquid dishwashing detergent can comprise (i) a non-ionic surfactant,including any ethoxylated non-ionic surfactant, alcohol alkoxylatedsurfactant, epoxy-capped poly(oxyalkylated) alcohol, or amine oxidesurfactant present in an amount from 0 to 10 wt %; (ii) a builder, inthe range of about 5-60 wt %, including any phosphate builder (e.g.,mono-phosphates, di-phosphates, tri-polyphosphates, otheroligomeric-polyphosphates, sodium tripolyphosphate-STPP), anyphosphate-free builder (e.g., amino acid-based compounds includingmethyl-glycine-diacetic acid [MGDA] and salts or derivatives thereof,glutamic-N,N-diacetic acid [GLDA] and salts or derivatives thereof,iminodisuccinic acid (IDS) and salts or derivatives thereof, carboxymethyl inulin and salts or derivatives thereof, nitrilotriacetic acid[NTA], diethylene triamine penta acetic acid [DTPA], B-alaninediaceticacid [B-ADA] and salts thereof), homopolymers and copolymers ofpoly-carboxylic acids and partially or completely neutralized saltsthereof, monomeric polycarboxylic acids and hydroxycarboxylic acids andsalts thereof in the range of 0.5 wt % to 50 wt %, orsulfonated/carboxylated polymers in the range of about 0.1 wt % to about50 wt %; (iii) a drying aid in the range of about 0.1 wt % to about 10wt % (e.g., polyesters, especially anionic polyesters, optionallytogether with further monomers with 3 to 6 functionalities—typicallyacid, alcohol or ester functionalities which are conducive topolycondensation, polycarbonate-, polyurethane- and/orpolyurea-polyorganosiloxane compounds or precursor compounds thereof,particularly of the reactive cyclic carbonate and urea type); (iv) asilicate in the range from about 1 wt % to about 20 wt % (e.g., sodiumor potassium silicates such as sodium disilicate, sodium meta-silicateand crystalline phyllosilicates); (v) an inorganic bleach (e.g.,perhydrate salts such as perborate, percarbonate, perphosphate,persulfate and persilicate salts) and/or an organic bleach (e.g.,organic peroxyacids such as diacyl- and tetraacylperoxides, especiallydiperoxydodecanedioic acid, diperoxytetradecanedioic acid, anddiperoxyhexadecanedioic acid); (vi) a bleach activator (e.g., organicperacid precursors in the range from about 0.1 wt % to about 10 wt %)and/or bleach catalyst (e.g., manganese triazacyclononane and relatedcomplexes; Co, Cu, Mn, and Fe bispyridylamine and related complexes; andpentamine acetate cobalt (III) and related complexes); (vii) a metalcare agent in the range from about 0.1 wt % to 5 wt % (e.g.,benzatriazoles, metal salts and complexes, and/or silicates); and/or(viii) any active enzyme disclosed herein in the range from about 0.01to 5.0 mg of active enzyme per gram of automatic dishwashing detergentcomposition, and an enzyme stabilizer component (e.g., oligosaccharides,polysaccharides, and inorganic divalent metal salts).

A detergent herein such as that for dish care can be comprised in a unitdose (e.g., sachet or pouch), for example, and can be as described abovefor a fabric care detergent, but rather comprise a suitable dishdetergent composition.

Compositions disclosed herein can be in the form of an oral carecomposition, for example. Examples of oral care compositions includedentifrices, toothpaste, mouth wash, mouth rinse, chewing gum, andedible strips that provide some form of oral care (e.g., treatment orprevention of cavities [dental caries], gingivitis, plaque, tartar,and/or periodontal disease). An oral care composition can also be fortreating an “oral surface”, which encompasses any soft or hard surfacewithin the oral cavity including surfaces of the tongue, hard and softpalate, buccal mucosa, gums and dental surfaces. A “dental surface”herein is a surface of a natural tooth or a hard surface of artificialdentition including a crown, cap, filling, bridge, denture, or dentalimplant, for example.

An oral care composition herein can comprise about 0.01-15.0 wt % (e.g.,˜0.1-10 wt % or ˜0.1-5.0 wt %, ˜0.1-2.0 wt %) of insoluble alpha-glucanparticles as disclosed herein, for example. Insoluble alpha-glucanparticles comprised in an oral care composition can sometimes beprovided therein as a thickening agent and/or dispersion agent, whichmay be useful to impart a desired consistency and/or mouth feel to thecomposition. One or more other thickening or dispersion agents can alsobe provided in an oral care composition herein, such as a carboxyvinylpolymer, carrageenan (e.g., L-carrageenan), natural gum (e.g., karaya,xanthan, gum arabic, tragacanth), colloidal magnesium aluminum silicate,or colloidal silica, for example.

An oral care composition herein may be a toothpaste or other dentifrice,for example. Such compositions, as well as any other oral carecomposition herein, can additionally comprise, without limitation, oneor more of an anticaries agent, antimicrobial or antibacterial agent,anticalculus or tartar control agent, surfactant, abrasive, pH-modifyingagent, foam modulator, humectant, flavorant, sweetener,pigment/colorant, whitening agent, and/or other suitable components.Examples of oral care compositions to which insoluble alpha-glucanparticles can be added are disclosed in U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. Nos.2006/0134025, 2002/0022006 and 2008/0057007, which are incorporatedherein by reference.

An anticaries agent herein can be an orally acceptable source offluoride ions. Suitable sources of fluoride ions include fluoride,monofluorophosphate and fluorosilicate salts as well as amine fluorides,including olaflur(N′-octadecyltrimethylendiamine-N,N,N′-tris(2-ethanol)-dihydrofluoride),for example. An anticaries agent can be present in an amount providing atotal of about 100-20000 ppm, about 200-5000 ppm, or about 500-2500 ppm,fluoride ions to the composition, for example. In oral care compositionsin which sodium fluoride is the sole source of fluoride ions, an amountof about 0.01-5.0 wt %, about 0.05-1.0 wt %, or about 0.1-0.5 wt %,sodium fluoride can be present in the composition, for example.

An antimicrobial or antibacterial agent suitable for use in an oral carecomposition herein includes, for example, phenolic compounds (e.g.,4-allylcatechol; p-hydroxybenzoic acid esters such as benzylparaben,butylparaben, ethylparaben, methylparaben and propylparaben;2-benzylphenol; butylated hydroxyanisole; butylated hydroxytoluene;capsaicin; carvacrol; creosol; eugenol; guaiacol; halogenatedbisphenolics such as hexachlorophene and bromochlorophene;4-hexylresorcinol; 8-hydroxyquinoline and salts thereof; salicylic acidesters such as menthyl salicylate, methyl salicylate and phenylsalicylate; phenol; pyrocatechol; salicylanilide; thymol; halogenateddiphenylether compounds such as triclosan and triclosan monophosphate),copper (II) compounds (e.g., copper (II) chloride, fluoride, sulfate andhydroxide), zinc ion sources (e.g., zinc acetate, citrate, gluconate,glycinate, oxide, and sulfate), phthalic acid and salts thereof (e.g.,magnesium monopotassium phthalate), hexetidine, octenidine,sanguinarine, benzalkonium chloride, domiphen bromide, alkylpyridiniumchlorides (e.g. cetylpyridinium chloride, tetradecylpyridinium chloride,N-tetradecyl-4-ethylpyridinium chloride), iodine, sulfonamides,bisbiguanides (e.g., alexidine, chlorhexidine, chlorhexidinedigluconate), piperidino derivatives (e.g., delmopinol, octapinol),magnolia extract, grapeseed extract, rosemary extract, menthol,geraniol, citral, eucalyptol, antibiotics (e.g., augmentin, amoxicillin,tetracycline, doxycycline, minocycline, metronidazole, neomycin,kanamycin, clindamycin), and/or any antibacterial agents disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 5,776,435, which is incorporated herein by reference. Oneor more antimicrobial agents can optionally be present at about 0.01-10wt % (e.g., 0.1-3 wt %), for example, in the disclosed oral carecomposition.

An anticalculus or tartar control agent suitable for use in an oral carecomposition herein includes, for example, phosphates and polyphosphates(e.g., pyrophosphates), polyaminopropanesulfonic acid (AMPS), zinccitrate trihydrate, polypeptides (e.g., polyaspartic and polyglutamicacids), polyolefin sulfonates, polyolefin phosphates, diphosphonates(e.g.,azacycloalkane-2,2-diphosphonates such asazacycloheptane-2,2-diphosphonic acid), N-methylazacyclopentane-2,3-diphosphonic acid, ethane-1-hydroxy-1,1-diphosphonicacid (EHDP), ethane-1-amino-1,1-diphosphonate, and/or phosphonoalkanecarboxylic acids and salts thereof (e.g., their alkali metal andammonium salts). Useful inorganic phosphate and polyphosphate saltsinclude, for example, monobasic, dibasic and tribasic sodium phosphates,sodium tripolyphosphate, tetrapolyphosphate, mono-, di-, tri- andtetra-sodium pyrophosphates, disodium dihydrogen pyrophosphate, sodiumtrimetaphosphate, sodium hexametaphosphate, or any of these in whichsodium is replaced by potassium or ammonium. Other useful anticalculusagents in certain embodiments include anionic polycarboxylate polymers(e.g., polymers or copolymers of acrylic acid, methacrylic, and maleicanhydride such as polyvinyl methyl ether/maleic anhydride copolymers).Still other useful anticalculus agents include sequestering agents suchas hydroxycarboxylic acids (e.g., citric, fumaric, malic, glutaric andoxalic acids and salts thereof) and aminopolycarboxylic acids (e.g.,EDTA). One or more anticalculus or tartar control agents can optionallybe present at about 0.01-50 wt % (e.g., about 0.05-25 wt % or about0.1-15 wt %), for example, in the disclosed oral care composition.

A surfactant suitable for use in an oral care composition herein may beanionic, non-ionic, or amphoteric, for example. Suitable anionicsurfactants include, without limitation, water-soluble salts of C₈₋₂₀alkyl sulfates, sulfonated monoglycerides of C₈₋₂₀ fatty acids,sarcosinates, and taurates. Examples of anionic surfactants includesodium lauryl sulfate, sodium coconut monoglyceride sulfonate, sodiumlauryl sarcosinate, sodium lauryl isoethionate, sodium laurethcarboxylate and sodium dodecyl benzenesulfonate. Suitable non-ionicsurfactants include, without limitation, poloxamers, polyoxyethylenesorbitan esters, fatty alcohol ethoxylates, alkylphenol ethoxylates,tertiary amine oxides, tertiary phosphine oxides, and dialkylsulfoxides. Suitable amphoteric surfactants include, without limitation,derivatives of C₈₋₂₀ aliphatic secondary and tertiary amines having ananionic group such as a carboxylate, sulfate, sulfonate, phosphate orphosphonate. An example of a suitable amphoteric surfactant iscocoamidopropyl betaine. One or more surfactants are optionally presentin a total amount of about 0.01-10 wt % (e.g., about 0.05-5.0 wt % orabout 0.1-2.0 wt %), for example, in the disclosed oral carecomposition.

An abrasive suitable for use in an oral care composition herein mayinclude, for example, silica (e.g., silica gel, hydrated silica,precipitated silica), alumina, insoluble phosphates, calcium carbonate,and resinous abrasives (e.g., a urea-formaldehyde condensation product).Examples of insoluble phosphates useful as abrasives herein areorthophosphates, polymetaphosphates and pyrophosphates, and includedicalcium orthophosphate dihydrate, calcium pyrophosphate, beta-calciumpyrophosphate, tricalcium phosphate, calcium polymetaphosphate andinsoluble sodium polymetaphosphate. One or more abrasives are optionallypresent in a total amount of about 5-70 wt % (e.g., about 10-56 wt % orabout 15-30 wt %), for example, in the disclosed oral care composition.The average particle size of an abrasive in certain embodiments is about0.1-30 microns (e.g., about 1-20 microns or about 5-15 microns).

An oral care composition in certain embodiments may comprise at leastone pH-modifying agent. Such agents may be selected to acidify, makemore basic, or buffer the pH of a composition to a pH range of about2-10 (e.g., pH ranging from about 2-8, 3-9, 4-8, 5-7, 6-10, or 7-9).Examples of pH-modifying agents useful herein include, withoutlimitation, carboxylic, phosphoric and sulfonic acids; acid salts (e.g.,monosodium citrate, disodium citrate, monosodium malate); alkali metalhydroxides (e.g. sodium hydroxide, carbonates such as sodium carbonate,bicarbonates, sesquicarbonates); borates; silicates; phosphates (e.g.,monosodium phosphate, trisodium phosphate, pyrophosphate salts); andimidazole.

A foam modulator suitable for use in an oral care composition herein maybe a polyethylene glycol (PEG), for example. High molecular weight PEGsare suitable, including those having an average molecular weight ofabout 200000-7000000 (e.g., about 500000-5000000 or about1000000-2500000), for example. One or more PEGs are optionally presentin a total amount of about 0.1-10 wt % (e.g. about 0.2-5.0 wt % or about0.25-2.0 wt %), for example, in the disclosed oral care composition.

An oral care composition in certain embodiments may comprise at leastone humectant. A humectant in certain embodiments may be a polyhydricalcohol such as glycerin, sorbitol, xylitol, or a low molecular weightPEG. Most suitable humectants also may function as a sweetener herein.One or more humectants are optionally present in a total amount of about1.0-70 wt % (e.g., about 1.0-50 wt %, about 2-25 wt %, or about 5-15 wt%), for example, in the disclosed oral care composition.

A natural or artificial sweetener may optionally be comprised in an oralcare composition herein. Examples of suitable sweeteners includedextrose, sucrose, maltose, dextrin, invert sugar, mannose, xylose,ribose, fructose, levulose, galactose, corn syrup (e.g., high fructosecorn syrup or corn syrup solids), partially hydrolyzed starch,hydrogenated starch hydrolysate, sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, maltitol,isomalt, aspartame, neotame, saccharin and salts thereof,dipeptide-based intense sweeteners, and cyclamates. One or moresweeteners are optionally present in a total amount of about 0.005-5.0wt %, for example, in the disclosed oral care composition.

A natural or artificial flavorant may optionally be comprised in an oralcare composition herein. Examples of suitable flavorants includevanillin; sage; marjoram; parsley oil; spearmint oil; cinnamon oil; oilof wintergreen (methylsalicylate); peppermint oil; clove oil; bay oil;anise oil; eucalyptus oil; citrus oils; fruit oils; essences such asthose derived from lemon, orange, lime, grapefruit, apricot, banana,grape, apple, strawberry, cherry, or pineapple; bean- and nut-derivedflavors such as coffee, cocoa, cola, peanut, or almond; and adsorbed andencapsulated flavorants. Also encompassed within flavorants herein areingredients that provide fragrance and/or other sensory effect in themouth, including cooling or warming effects. Such ingredients include,without limitation, menthol, menthyl acetate, menthyl lactate, camphor,eucalyptus oil, eucalyptol, anethole, eugenol, cassia, oxanone,Irisone®, propenyl guaiethol, thymol, linalool, benzaldehyde,cinnamaldehyde, N-ethyl-p-menthan-3-carboxamine,N,2,3-trimethyl-2-isopropylbutanamide, 3-(1-menthoxy)-propane-1,2-diol,cinnamaldehyde glycerol acetal (CGA), and menthone glycerol acetal(MGA). One or more flavorants are optionally present in a total amountof about 0.01-5.0 wt % (e.g., about 0.1-2.5 wt %), for example, in thedisclosed oral care composition.

An oral care composition in certain embodiments may comprise at leastone bicarbonate salt. Any orally acceptable bicarbonate can be used,including alkali metal bicarbonates such as sodium or potassiumbicarbonate, and ammonium bicarbonate, for example. One or morebicarbonate salts are optionally present in a total amount of about0.1-50 wt % (e.g., about 1-20 wt %), for example, in the disclosed oralcare composition.

An oral care composition in certain embodiments may comprise at leastone whitening agent and/or colorant. A suitable whitening agent is aperoxide compound such as any of those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.8,540,971, which is incorporated herein by reference. Suitable colorantsherein include pigments, dyes, lakes and agents imparting a particularluster or reflectivity such as pearling agents, for example. Specificexamples of colorants useful herein include talc; mica; magnesiumcarbonate; calcium carbonate; magnesium silicate; magnesium aluminumsilicate; silica; titanium dioxide; zinc oxide; red, yellow, brown andblack iron oxides; ferric ammonium ferrocyanide; manganese violet;ultramarine; titaniated mica; and bismuth oxychloride. One or morecolorants are optionally present in a total amount of about 0.001-20 wt% (e.g., about 0.01-10 wt % or about 0.1-5.0 wt %), for example, in thedisclosed oral care composition.

Additional components that can optionally be included in an oralcomposition herein include one or more enzymes (above), vitamins, andanti-adhesion agents, for example. Examples of vitamins useful hereininclude vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin B5, and folic acid. Examples ofsuitable anti-adhesion agents include solbrol, ficin, and quorum-sensinginhibitors.

The present disclosure also concerns a method of treating a material.This method comprises contacting a material with an aqueous compositioncomprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles as disclosed herein.

A material contacted with an aqueous composition in a contacting methodherein can comprise a fabric in some aspects. A fabric herein cancomprise natural fibers, synthetic fibers, semi-synthetic fibers, or anycombination thereof. A semi-synthetic fiber herein is produced usingnaturally occurring material that has been chemically derivatized, anexample of which is rayon. Non-limiting examples of fabric types hereininclude fabrics made of (i) cellulosic fibers such as cotton (e.g.,broadcloth, canvas, chambray, chenille, chintz, corduroy, cretonne,damask, denim, flannel, gingham, jacquard, knit, matelassé, oxford,percale, poplin, plissé, sateen, seersucker, sheers, terry cloth, twill,velvet), rayon (e.g., viscose, modal, lyocell), linen, and Tencel®; (ii)proteinaceous fibers such as silk, wool and related mammalian fibers;(iii) synthetic fibers such as polyester, acrylic, nylon, and the like;(iv) long vegetable fibers from jute, flax, ramie, coir, kapok, sisal,henequen, abaca, hemp and sunn; and (v) any combination of a fabric of(i)-(iv). Fabric comprising a combination of fiber types (e.g., naturaland synthetic) include those with both a cotton fiber and polyester, forexample. Materials/articles containing one or more fabrics hereininclude, for example, clothing, curtains, drapes, upholstery, carpeting,bed linens, bath linens, tablecloths, sleeping bags, tents, carinteriors, etc. Other materials comprising natural and/or syntheticfibers include, for example, non-woven fabrics, paddings, paper, andfoams.

An aqueous composition that is contacted with a fabric can be, forexample, a fabric care composition (e.g., laundry detergent, fabricsoftener). Thus, a treatment method in certain embodiments can beconsidered a fabric care method or laundry method if employing a fabriccare composition therein. A fabric care composition herein iscontemplated to effect one or more of the following fabric care benefits(i.e., surface substantive effects): wrinkle removal, wrinkle reduction,wrinkle resistance, fabric wear reduction, fabric wear resistance,fabric pilling reduction, extended fabric life, fabric colormaintenance, fabric color fading reduction, reduced dye transfer, fabriccolor restoration, fabric soiling reduction, fabric soil release, fabricshape retention, fabric smoothness enhancement, anti-redeposition ofsoil on fabric, anti-greying of laundry, improved fabric hand/handle,and/or fabric shrinkage reduction.

Examples of conditions (e.g., time, temperature, wash/rinse volumes) forconducting a fabric care method or laundry method herein are disclosedin WO1997/003161 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,794,661, 4,580,421 and 5,945,394,which are incorporated herein by reference. In other examples, amaterial comprising fabric can be contacted with an aqueous compositionherein: (i) for at least about 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90,100, 110, or 120 minutes; (ii) at a temperature of at least about 10,15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, or 95°C. (e.g., for laundry wash or rinse: a “cold” temperature of about15-30° C., a “warm” temperature of about 30-50° C., a “hot” temperatureof about 50-95° C.), (iii) at a pH of about 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,11, or 12 (e.g., pH range of about 2-12, or about 3-11); (iv) at a salt(e.g., NaCl) concentration of at least about 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5,3.0, 3.5, or 4.0 wt %; or any combination of (i)-(iv).

The contacting step in a fabric care method or laundry method cancomprise any of washing, soaking, and/or rinsing steps, for example.Contacting a material or fabric in still further embodiments can beperformed by any means known in the art, such as dissolving, mixing,shaking, spraying, treating, immersing, flushing, pouring on or in,combining, painting, coating, applying, affixing to, and/orcommunicating an effective amount of insoluble alpha-glucan particlesherein with the fabric or material. In still further embodiments,contacting may be used to treat a fabric to provide a surfacesubstantive effect. As used herein, the term “fabric hand” or “handle”refers to a person's tactile sensory response towards fabric which maybe physical, physiological, psychological, social or any combinationthereof. In one embodiment, the fabric hand may be measured using aPhabrOmeter® System for measuring relative hand value (available from NuCybertek, Inc. Davis, Calif.) (American Association of Textile Chemistsand Colorists [AATCC test method “202-2012, Relative Hand Value ofTextiles: Instrumental Method”]).

In some aspects of treating a material comprising fabric, insolublealpha-glucan particle components of the aqueous composition adsorb tothe fabric. This feature is believed to render insoluble alpha-glucanparticles herein useful as anti-redeposition agents and/or anti-greyingagents in fabric care compositions disclosed (in addition to theirviscosity-modifying effect). An anti-redeposition agent or anti-greyingagent herein helps keep soil from redepositing onto clothing in washwater after the soil has been removed. It is further contemplated thatadsorption of insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein to a fabricenhances mechanical properties of the fabric.

Adsorption of insoluble alpha-glucan particles to a fabric herein can bemeasured using a colorimetric technique (e.g., Dubois et al., 1956,Anal. Chem. 28:350-356; Zemljič et al., 2006, Lenzinger Berichte85:68-76; both incorporated herein by reference), for example, or anyother method known in the art.

Other materials that can be contacted in the above treatment methodinclude surfaces that can be treated with a dish detergent (e.g.,automatic dishwashing detergent or hand dish detergent). Examples ofsuch materials include surfaces of dishes, glasses, pots, pans, bakingdishes, utensils and flatware made from ceramic material, china, metal,glass, plastic (e.g., polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, etc.)and wood (collectively referred to herein as “tableware”). Thus, thetreatment method in certain embodiments can be considered a dishwashingmethod or tableware washing method, for example. Examples of conditions(e.g., time, temperature, wash volume) for conducting a dishwashing ortableware washing method herein are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.8,575,083, which is incorporated herein by reference. In other examples,a tableware article can be contacted with an aqueous composition hereinunder a suitable set of conditions such as any of those disclosed abovewith regard to contacting a fabric-comprising material.

Other materials that can be contacted in the above treatment methodinclude oral surfaces such as any soft or hard surface within the oralcavity including surfaces of the tongue, hard and soft palate, buccalmucosa, gums and dental surfaces (e.g., natural tooth or a hard surfaceof artificial dentition such as a crown, cap, filling, bridge, denture,or dental implant). Thus, a treatment method in certain embodiments canbe considered an oral care method or dental care method, for example.Conditions (e.g., time, temperature) for contacting an oral surface withan aqueous composition herein should be suitable for the intendedpurpose of making such contact. Other surfaces that can be contacted ina treatment method also include a surface of the integumentary systemsuch as skin, hair or nails.

Thus, certain embodiments of the present disclosure concern material(e.g., fabric) that comprises insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein.Such material can be produced following a material treatment method asdisclosed herein, for example. A material may comprise insolublealpha-glucan particles in some aspects if the compound is adsorbed to,or otherwise in contact with, the surface of the material.

Some aspects of a method of treating a material herein further comprisea drying step, in which a material is dried after being contacted withthe aqueous composition. A drying step can be performed directly afterthe contacting step, or following one or more additional steps thatmight follow the contacting step (e.g., drying of a fabric after beingrinsed, in water for example, following a wash in an aqueous compositionherein). Drying can be performed by any of several means known in theart, such as air drying (e.g., ˜20-25° C.), or at a temperature of atleast about 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 120, 140, 160, 170, 175,180, or 200° C., for example. A material that has been dried hereintypically has less than 3, 2, 1, 0.5, or 0.1 wt % water comprisedtherein. Fabric is a preferred material for conducting an optionaldrying step.

An aqueous composition used in a treatment method herein can be anyaqueous composition disclosed herein. Examples of aqueous compositionsinclude detergents (e.g., laundry detergent or dish detergent), fabricsofteners, and water-containing dentifrices such as toothpaste.

In some aspects, a material that can be treated with an liquidcomposition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein is anon-woven product. This treatment, which can involve application of anaqueous or non-aqueous composition (e.g., dispersion) comprisinginsoluble alpha-glucan particles herein (at any concentration asdisclosed herein) typically followed by a drying step (e.g., air drying,heated drying, vacuum drying; drying temperature can be any suitabletemperature disclosed herein, for example), can strengthen (i.e., act asa binder for) a non-woven product. In some aspects, insolublealpha-glucan particles can increase the dry or wet tensile strength(measured in N/5 cm) of a non-woven by about, or at least about, 1000%,10000%, 100000%, or 1000000%, for example. Thus, further provided hereinare non-woven products containing a binder/strengthening agent thatcomprises insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein. Optionally, suchinsoluble alpha-glucan particles can be crosslinked; any crosslinkingagent and/or procedure disclosed herein can be used (e.g., glyoxal,citric acid, PAE) to prepare crosslinked glucan particles beforeapplying them to the non-woven product. In some aspects, the dry or wettensile strength of a non-woven comprising an alpha-glucan binder hereincan be about, or at least about, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50, 75, 100, 125, 130,135, 140, 145, 150, 10-150, 15-150, 20-150, 25-150, 10-140, 15-140,20-140, or 25-140 N/5 cm. On a basis of the total weight of non-wovenmaterial and alpha-glucan binder in a non-woven product, the content ofthe alpha-glucan therein can be about 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 5-25, 5-20,10-25, or 10-20 wt %. In aspects in which a crosslinker is used, suchcan be about 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 2-6, 2-5, 3-6, or 3-5 wt % of the totalweight of a non-woven product. A non-woven product herein can be, forexample, air-laid, dry-laid, wet-laid, carded, electrospun, spun-lace,spun-bind, or melt-blown. In some aspects, a non-woven product can be anabrasive or scouring sheet, agricultural covering, agricultural seedstrip, apparel lining, automobile headliner or upholstery, bib, cheesewrap, civil engineering fabric, coffee filter, cosmetic remover orapplicator, detergent pouch/sachet, fabric softener sheet, envelope,face mask, filter, garment bag, heat or electricity conductive fabric,household care wipe (e.g., for floor care, hard surface cleaning, petcare etc.), house wrap, hygiene product (e.g., sanitary pad/napkin,under-pad), insulation, label, laundry aid, medical care or personalinjury care product (e.g., bandage, cast padding or cover, dressing,pack, sterile overwrap, sterile packaging, surgical drape, surgicalgown, swab), mop, napkin or paper towel, paper, personal wipe or babywipe, reusable bag, roofing undercovering, table linen, tag, tea orcoffee bag, upholstery, vacuum cleaning bag, or wallcovering. The fiberof a non-woven product can comprise cellulose and/or alpha-1,3-glucan insome aspects, or can comprise one or more other materials disclosedherein that can be used to form a fiber. Examples of non-woven productsherein, non-woven product materials, and/or methods of production ofnon-woven products and materials, can be as disclosed in Int. Pat. Appl.Publ. No. WO2019055397 or U.S. Pat. Appl. Publ. Nos. 2018/0282918,2017/0167063, 2018/0320291, or 2010/0291213, which are each incorporatedherein by reference.

A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein can bea film or coating, for example. A film or coating can be a dried film orcoating in some aspects, comprising less than about 3, 2, 1, 0.5, or 0.1wt % water, for example. In some aspects, a film or coating can compriseabout 20-40, 20-35, 20-30, 25-40, 25-35, or 25-30 wt % insolublealpha-glucan particles, where the balance of material optionally iswater, an aqueous solution, and/or a plasticizer. The amount ofinsoluble alpha-glucan particles comprised in a film or coating hereincan be about, or at least about, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12,13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30,31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48,49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67,68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85,86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 99.5, or 99.9 wt%, for example.

A film or coating herein can have a thickness of about, at least about,or up to about, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5,2, 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 15.5, 15, 17.5, 20, 22.5, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50,75, 100, 150, 200, 0.5-1.5, 0.8-1.5, 1.0-1.5, 0.5-1.4, 0.8-1.4, or1.0-1.4 mil (1 mil=0.001 inch), for instance. In some aspects, suchthickness is uniform, which can be characterized by having a contiguousarea that (i) is at least 20%, 30%, 40%, or 50% of the totalfilm/coating area, and (ii) has a standard deviation of thickness ofless than about 0.06, 0.05, or 0.04 mil. A film or coating herein can becharacterized as thin (e.g., <2 mil) in some aspects. A film herein istypically a cast film.

A film or coating herein can exhibit various degrees of transparency asdesired. For example, a film/coating can be highly transparent (e.g.,high light transmission, and/or low haze). Optical transparency as usedherein can, for example, refer to a film or coating allowing at leastabout 10-99% light transmission, or at least about 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%,90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99% light transmission, and/or less than30%, 25%, 20%, 15%, 10%, 5%, 2.5%, 2%, or 1% haze. High opticaltransparency can optionally refer to a film/coating having at leastabout 90% light transmittance and/or a haziness of less than 10%. Lighttransmittance of a film/coating herein can be measured following testASTM D1746 (2009, Standard Test Method for Transparency of PlasticSheeting, ASTM International, West Conshohocken, Pa.), for example,which is incorporated herein by reference. Haze of a film/coating hereincan be measured following test ASTM D1003-13 (2013, Standard Test Methodfor Haze and Luminous Transmittance of Transparent Plastics, ASTMInternational, West Conshohocken, Pa.), for example, which isincorporated herein by reference. It is notable, for example, that afilm/coating herein with about 20-40, 20-35, 20-30, 25-40, 25-35, or25-30 wt % insoluble alpha-glucan particles (e.g., balance is water oraqueous solution) has high optical transparency (e.g., >90% lighttransparency and/or less than 10% haze), whereas a film/coating with anotherwise same amount of insoluble alpha-glucan (e.g., non-hydrolyzed)of DPw >200 (e.g., DPw ≥˜700 or ˜800), crystallinity <0.65 (e.g.,≤0.60), and/or D50 diameter of 5-50 microns typically does not exhibitthis beneficial feature (e.g., latter type of film/coating can be hazy).

A film or coating herein can optionally further comprise a plasticizersuch as glycerol, propylene glycol, ethylene glycol, and/or polyethyleneglycol. In some aspects, other film components (in addition to insolublealpha-glucan particles herein) can be as disclosed in U.S. Patent. Appl.Publ. No. 2011/0151224, 2015/0191550, or 20190153674, U.S. Pat. No.9,688,035 or 3345200, or International Patent Appl. Publ. No.WO2018/200437, all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

A film or coating, or any suitable solid composition herein (e.g.,composite), in some aspects can further comprise at least onecrosslinking agent. Insoluble alpha-glucan particles in the compositioncan be crosslinked (covalently) to each other and/or to at least oneother component (e.g., polymer, active agent) of the composition, or toa component of a substrate if the composition is applied to thesubstrate. Yet, in some aspects, insoluble alpha-glucan particles arenot crosslinked in any manner, but one or more other components of thecomposition are crosslinked. Crosslinking can (i) enhance the tensilestrength of, and/or (ii) plasticize, film or coating compositions, forexample. Crosslinking can link a film or coating to a substrate in someaspects. In some cases, a crosslinking agent such as a di- orpoly-carboxylic acid, aldehyde, or polyphenol can be used to impart bothplasticity and linking-to-substrate features. Suitable crosslinkingagents for preparing a composition herein with crosslinking as aboveinclude are contemplated to include phosphoryl chloride (POCl₃),polyphosphate, sodium trimetaphosphate (STMP), boron-containingcompounds (e.g., boric acid, diborates, tetraborates such as tetraboratedecahydrate, pentaborates, polymeric compounds such as Polybor®, alkaliborates), polyvalent metals (e.g., titanium-containing compounds such astitanium ammonium lactate, titanium triethanolamine, titaniumacetylacetonate, or polyhydroxy complexes of titanium;zirconium-containing compounds such as zirconium lactate, zirconiumcarbonate, zirconium acetylacetonate, zirconium triethanolamine,zirconium diisopropylamine lactate, or polyhydroxy complexes ofzirconium), glyoxal, glutaraldehyde, aldehyde, polyphenol, divinylsulfone, epichlorohydrin, polyamide-epichlorohydrin (PAE), di- orpoly-carboxylic acids (e.g., citric acid, malic acid, tartaric acid,succinic acid, glutaric acid, adipic acid), dichloro acetic acid,polyamines, diethylene glycol dimethyl ether (diglyme), and ethyleneglycol diglycidyl ether (EGDE). Still other examples of suitablecrosslinking agents are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,462,917,4,464,270, 4,477,360 and 4,799,550, and U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No.2008/0112907, which are all incorporated herein by reference. Yet, insome aspects, a crosslinking agent is not a boron-containing compound(e.g., as described above). Insoluble alpha-glucan herein can becrosslinked, such as with any crosslinker as presently disclosed, inother contexts besides a film or coating (e.g., in a dispersion or othercomposition disclosed herein).

One or more conditioning agents can be comprised in a film of coating,for example, to enhance the haptics of the film or coating. Aconditioning agent can be an anionic softener such as sulphated oil,soap, sulphated alcohol, and/or oil emulsion; a cationic softener suchas a quaternary ammonium compound; a nonionic softener such as apolyoxyethylene derivative, polyethylene emulsion, wax emulsion, and/orsilicon softener; natural fatty acid; oil; monoglyceride; diglyceride;polyglyceride; citric acid ester; lactic acid ester; and/or sugar estersuch as a sucrose ester and/or sorbitan ester. Also disclosed arearticles comprising an adhesive, film, coating, or binder comprisinginsoluble alpha-glucan particles herein in a dry form. Such articles(optionally, “coated articles”) comprise a substrate having at least onesurface on which is disposed/deposited the coating, adhesive, film, orbinder, in a substantially continuous or discontinuous manner. In someaspects, an article comprises paper, leather, wood, metal, polymer,fibrous material, masonry, drywall, plaster, and/or an architecturalsurface. An “architectural surface” herein is an external or internalsurface of a building or other man-made structure. In some aspects, anarticle comprises a porous substrate such as in paper, cardboard,paperboard, corrugated board, a cellulosic substrate, a textile, orleather. Yet, in some aspects, an article can comprise a polymer such aspolyamide, polyolefin, polylactic acid, polyethylene terephthalate(PET), poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT), aramid, polyethylenesulfide (PES), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), polyimide (PI), polyethyleneimine (PEI), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polysulfone (PS), polyetherether ketone (PEEK), polyethylene, polypropylene, poly(cyclic olefins),poly(cyclohexylene dimethylene terephthalate), poly(trimethylenefurandicarboxylate) (PTF), or cellophane. In some aspects, an articlecomprising a fibrous substrate is a fiber, yarn, fabric, fabric blend,textile, non-woven, paper, or carpet. A fibrous substrate can containnatural and/or synthetic fibers, such as cotton, cellulose, wool, silk,rayon, nylon, aramid, acetate, polyurethane urea, acrylic, jute, sisal,sea grass, coir, polyamide, polyester, polyolefin, polyacrylonitrile,polypropylene, polyaramid, or blends thereof.

A film, coating, or other composition (e.g. composite) herein can havegrease/oil and/or oxygen barrier properties in some aspects. Such acomposition can comprise, along with insoluble alpha-glucan particlesherein, one or more components as disclosed in U.S. Patent. Appl. Publ.No. 20190153674 or International Patent Appl. Publ. No. WO2018/200437,which are each incorporated herein by reference. For example, a film,coating, or other composition herein can comprise, optionally as abinder, one or more of polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetate, partiallysaponified polyvinyl acetate, silanol-modified polyvinyl alcohol,butenediol vinyl alcohol co-polymer (BVOH), polyurethane, starch, corndextrin, carboxymethyl cellulose, cellulose ethers, hydroxyethylcellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose, ethyl hydroxyethyl cellulose, methylcellulose, alginates, sodium alginate, xanthan, carrageenan, casein, soyprotein, guar gums, synthetic polymers, styrene butadiene latex, and/orstyrene acrylate latex. A composition for preparing a film, coating, orother composition in some aspects can comprise about 50, 55, 60, 65, 70,75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 65-85, 65-80, 70-85, or 70-80 wt % of a binder orcompound such as polyvinyl alcohol (or any other of the above-referencedcompounds), and about 50, 45, 40, 35, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, 2.5, 15-35,20-35, 15-30, or 20-30 wt % insoluble alpha-glucan particles aspresently disclosed. In some aspects, a composition for preparing afilm, coating, or other composition can comprise a ratio of binder orcompound (e.g., any of the above-referenced compounds such as polyvinylalcohol or starch) to insoluble alpha-glucan herein of about 7:3,7.5:2.5, 8:2, 8.5:1.5, or 9:1, based on the wt % of each of thesecomponents in the composition. In some aspects, a film, coating, orother composition does not comprise starch, while in other aspects suchas an oxygen barrier, starch can be included (e.g., as disclosed in U.S.Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2011/0135912 or U.S. Pat. No. 5,621,026 or6,692,801, which are incorporated herein by reference). Grease/oilbarrier properties of a coating or film composition herein can beevaluated using a standard “KIT” type test following TechnicalAssociation of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI) Test Method T-559cm-02 (Grease resistance test for paper and paperboard, TAPPI Press,Atlanta, Ga., USA; incorporated herein by reference), for example. Goodgrease/oil barrier/resistance function is indicated in this test byvalues closer to 12 on a scale of 1 to 12. Grease/oil barrierproperties, as well as water/aqueous liquid barrier properties, can beevaluated by Cobb test as disclosed in Example 8, if desired. A barrierherein typically has a Cobb index value of less than 20, 17.5, 15, 12.5,10, 7.5, or 5. The Cobb index value of a barrier with one or more of theabove-referenced compounds and insoluble alpha-glucan herein can beabout, or at least about, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, or 60% lower, forexample, than the Cobb index value of the barrier that is otherwise thesame but lacking the insoluble alpha-glucan. Oxygen barrier propertiesof a coating or film composition herein can be evaluated by measuringthe oxygen transmission rate (OTR) of the coating; OTR can bedetermined, for example, according to ASTM F-1927-07 (2007, StandardTest Method for Determination of Oxygen Gas Transmission Rate,Permeability and Permeance at Controlled Relative Humidity ThroughBarrier Materials Using a Coulometric Detector, ASTM International, WestConshohocken, Pa.), which is incorporated herein by reference. OTR canbe determined under relative humidity conditions of about 50%-80%,30%-55%, 35%-50%, or 30%-80%, and/or a temperature of about, or at leastabout, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 15-40, 15-35, 15-30, 15-25, 20-40,20-35, 20-30, or 20-25° C., for example. Examples of substrates hereinthat can take advantage of a grease/oil and/or oxygen barrier coatinginclude any of the foregoing substrates/surfaces, including a substratecomprising cellulose (e.g., paper, paperboard, cardboard, corrugatedboard, textile), polyethylene, polypropylene, poly lactic acid,poly(ethylene terephthalate) (e.g., MYLAR), poly(trimethyleneterephthalate), polyamide, polybutylene succinate, polybutylene adipateterephthalate, polybutylene succinate adipate, poly(trimethylenefurandicarboxylate), a synthetic and/or petrol-based substrate, or abio-based substrate. Grease/oil and/or oxygen barrier activity of acoated material herein can be increased by about, or at least about 5%,10%, 15%, or 20%, for example, compared to the grease/oil and/or oxygenbarrier activity of the material that (i) is uncoated or (ii) contains acoating that differs from the foregoing coating by lacking the insolublealpha-glucan particles component. Any of the foregoing film, coating, orother compositions can be in the form of a laminate or extruded product,for example, and that is optionally situated on any of the foregoingsubstrates.

A film, coating, or other composition (e.g., dispersion, foam,masterbatch) comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein canfurther comprise polyurethane (e.g., any as disclosed herein) in someaspects. Such a composition can comprise about 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 35, 30,35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 5-60, 5-50, 5-45, 5-40, 5-35, 5-30, 10-60,10-50, 10-45, 10-40, 10-35, or 10-30 wt % of insoluble alpha-glucanherein, for example; the balance can be comprised mostly of (e.g., beover 90% or 95% of) one or more polyurethanes. Such a composition can bewet (e.g., a dispersion of glucan and polyurethane), or dry (e.g., amasterbatch, film/coating, laminate, foam, or extruded composite ofglucan and polyurethane). A polyurethane herein can be of a molecularweight that is about, or at least about, 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, 3000,3500, 4000, 1000-3000, 1500-3000, 1000-2500, or 1500-2500, for example.Such a composition can, in some instances, be hydrolytically aged (e.g.,exposed to 45-55 or ˜50° C., and/or 90-98% or ˜95% relative humidity,for a period of 2-4 or 3 days). A polyurethane film, coating, or othercomposition herein can have, or be within plus/minus 5% or 10% of, anyof the features/values (e.g., tensile stress at break, % elongation atbreak, tensile stress at 50% elongation, tensile stress at 300%elongation, area under the curve) listed in Tables 9 and 10 below(Example 10), for example. In some aspects, a polyurethane compositionwith insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan herein can be heat- and/orpressure-processable; application of heat and/or pressure for pressing,molding, extruding, or any other related processing step can be atabout, or at least about, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 130, 140,95-115, or 100-110° C., and/or at a pressure of at least about 5000,10000, 15000, 20000, or 25000 psi, for example. Such application of heatand/or pressure can be for a time of at least about 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,8, 9, 10, 15, or 30 minutes, for example. A pressed polyurethanecomposition in some aspects such as a film can be about, or at leastabout, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 98%, 99%, or 100% transparent ortranslucent. In some aspects, any polyurethane composition presentlydisclosed can be made by a process that comprises providing an aqueouspolyurethane dispersion, and mixing insoluble alpha-glucan particlesherein with the polyurethane dispersion (e.g., by adding an aqueousdispersion of the glucan particles). The resulting aqueous dispersioncan be used directly to make a composition (e.g., a film or coating), orit can be dried to a masterbatch that is then used to prepare acomposition (e.g., by melt-processing).

A film or coating in some aspects can be in the form of an edible filmor coating. Such a material can, in some aspects, comprise insolublealpha-glucan particles herein and one or more components as described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 4,710,228, 4,543,370, 4,820,533, 4,981,707, 5,470,581,5,997,918, 8,206,765, or 8999413, or U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No.2005/0214414, which are incorporated herein by reference. In someaspects, insoluble alpha-glucan particles replace starch and/or starchderivatives in an edible film or coating, optionally as disclosed in anyof the foregoing references. An edible film or coating can be on potatoproducts (e.g., potato strips such as French fries), other vegetables orvegetable products (e.g., zucchini, squash, sweet potatoes, onions,okra, peppers, string beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, cabbage,carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, bean sprouts, onions,any fresh cut version of a vegetable), mushrooms, fruits (e.g., berriessuch as raspberries, strawberries, or blue berries, avocados, kiwis,kumquats, oranges, tangerines, apples, pears, bananas, grapefruit,cherries, papaya, lemons, limes, mangos, peaches, cantaloupe, any freshcut version of a fruit), and/or nuts (peanuts, walnuts, almonds, pecans,cashews, filberts/hazel nuts, Brazil nuts, macadamias), for example. Anyother food disclosed herein, as appropriate, can have an edible coating,for example. These and other food products having an edible film orcoating herein can be fried or baked in some aspects, and/or the film orcoating provides tenderness, moisture retention, protection frommoisture, crispness, dietary fiber (in place of digestible starch),oxygen barrier, freshness, and/or anti-ripening. Anti-ripening in someaspects can be measured by the degree to which a coating lowers (e.g.,by at least 25%, 50%, 75%, 80%, 85%, or 90%) the emission of a gaseousripening hormone, such as ethylene, by a plant-based product (e.g., at15-30, 15-25, or 20-25° C.), and/or by the degree to which plant productsoftening and/or sweetening is decreased by a coating. An edible coatingin some aspects can be prepared by applying an aqueous dispersioncomprising insoluble alpha-glucan herein (e.g., at 5-15, 5-12, 5-10,7.5-15, 7.5-12, or 7.5-10 wt % in water or aqueous solution) to a foodproduct and drying the dispersion (e.g., by air drying, forced airdrying, vacuum drying, and/or heating).

A coating composition in some aspects, which can be used to prepare acoating herein, can comprise any of the foregoingcomponents/ingredients/formulations. In some aspects, a coatingcomposition is a latex composition, such as described below.

A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein can bea latex composition. Examples of latex compositions herein include paint(e.g., primer, finishing/decorative), adhesives, films, coatings, andbinders. Formulations and/or components (in addition to insolublealpha-glucan particles herein) of a latex composition herein can be asdescribed in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,881,782, 3,440,199,3,294,709, 5,312,863, 4,069,186 and 6,297,296, and International PatentAppl. Publ. No. WO2019046123, which are all incorporated herein byreference.

Insoluble alpha-glucan particles as presently disclosed can be presentin a latex composition in any useful amount, such as at about, or atleast about, 0.01%, 0.02%, 0.03%, 0.04%, 0.05%, 0.06%, 0.07%, 0.08%,0.09%, 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 0.4%, 0.5%, 0.6%, 0.7%, 0.8%, 0.9%, 1%, 2%, 3%,4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%,60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 0.01%-75% 0.01%-5%, 5%-20%, 20%-50%, or 50%-75%based on the weight of all the dispersed polymer solids of the latex.

A latex composition in some aspects can comprise a polymer polymerizedfrom at least one ethylenically unsaturated monomer (e.g.,monoethylenically unsaturated monomer); polyurethane; epoxy, and/or arubber elastomer. Examples of monoethylenically unsaturated monomersherein include vinyl monomers, acrylic monomers, allylic monomers,acrylamide monomers, monocarboxylic unsaturated acids and dicarboxylicunsaturated acids.

Examples of suitable vinyl monomers of a polymer in a latex compositionherein include any compounds having vinyl functionality (i.e., ethylenicunsaturation) such as vinyl esters (e.g., vinyl acetate, vinylpropionate, vinyl laurate, vinyl pivalate, vinyl nonanoate, vinyldecanoate, vinyl neodecanoate, vinyl butyrates, vinyl benzoates, vinylisopropyl acetates), vinyl aromatic hydrocarbons (e.g., styrene, methylstyrenes and similar lower alkyl styrenes, chlorostyrene, vinyl toluene,vinyl naphthalene, divinyl benzene), vinyl aliphatic hydrocarbons (e.g.,vinyl chloride; vinylidene chloride; alpha olefins such as ethylene,propylene and isobutylene; conjugated dienes such as 1,3-butadiene,methyl-2-butadiene, 1,3-piperylene, 2,3-dimethyl butadiene, isoprene,cyclohexene, cyclopentadiene, and dicyclopentadiene) and vinyl alkylethers (e.g., methyl vinyl ether, isopropyl vinyl ether, n-butyl vinylether, isobutyl vinyl ether), but excluding compounds having acrylicfunctionality (e.g., acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, esters of suchacids, acrylonitrile, acrylamides). In some aspects, a latex compositionherein comprises a vinyl acetate-ethylene copolymer, carboxylated vinylacetate-ethylene copolymer, and/or or polyvinyl acetate.

Examples of suitable acrylic monomers of a polymer in a latexcomposition herein include alkyl acrylates, alkyl methacrylates,acrylate acids, methacrylate acids, aromatic derivatives of acrylic andmethacrylic acid, acrylamides, and acrylonitrile. Typically, alkylacrylate and methacrylic monomers (also referred to as alkyl esters ofacrylic or methacrylic acid) have an alkyl ester portion containing from1 to about 18 carbon atoms per molecule, or from 1 to about 8 carbonatoms per molecule. Suitable acrylic monomers include, for example,methyl acrylate and methacrylate, ethyl acrylate and methacrylate, butylacrylate and methacrylate, propyl acrylate and methacrylate, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate and methacrylate, cyclohexyl acrylate and methacrylate,decyl acrylate and methacrylate, isodecyl acrylate and methacrylate,benzyl acrylate and methacrylate, isobornyl acrylate and methacrylate,neopentyl acrylate and methacrylate, and 1-adamantyl methacrylate. Ifacid functionality is desired, acids such as acrylic acid or methacrylicacid can also be used.

A latex composition in some aspects comprises a polyurethane polymer.Examples of suitable polyurethane polymers are those comprisingpolysaccharides as disclosed in International Patent Appl. Publ. No.WO2018/017789, which is incorporated herein by reference. A latexcomprising a polyurethane can be prepared, for example, as disclosed inU.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2016/0347978, which is incorporated hereinby reference, and/or comprise the reaction product of one or morepolyisocyanates with one or more polyols. Useful polyols includepolycarbonate polyols, polyester polyols and polyether polyols, forexample. Polycarbonate polyurethane herein can be formed as the reactionproduct of a polyol such as 1,3-propanediol, 1,4-butanediol,1,6-hexanediol, diethylene glycol, or tetraethylene glycol, with adiaryl carbonate such as diphenyl carbonate or phosgene. At least onepolyisocyanate herein can be an aliphatic polyisocyanate, aromaticpolyisocyanate, or polyisocyanate that has both aromatic and aliphaticgroups. Examples of polyisocyanates include 1,6-hexamethylenediisocyanate, isophorone diisocyanate, 2,4-toluene diisocyanate,2,6-toluene diisocyanate, mixtures of 2,4- and 2,6-toluene diisocyanate,bis(4-isocyanatocyclohexyl) methane,1,3-bis(1-isocyanato-1-methylethyl)benzene,bis(4-isocyanatophenyl)methane, 2,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate,2,2′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate, 2,4-diisocyanatotoluene,bis(3-isocyanatophenyl)methane, 1,4-diisocyanatobenzene,1,3-diisocyanato-o-xylene, 1,3-diisocyanato-p-xylene,1,3-diisocyanato-m-xylene, 2,4-diisocyanato-1-chlorobenzene,2,4-diisocyanato-1-nitrobenzene, 2,5-diisocyanato-1-nitrobenzene,m-phenylene diisocyanate, hexahydrotoluene diisocyanate, 1,5-naphthalenediisocyanate, 1-methoxy-2,4-phenylene diisocyanate, 4,4′-biphenylmethanediisocyanate, 4,4′-biphenylene diisocyanate,3,3′-dimethyl-4,4′-diphenylmethane, diisocyanate,3,3′-4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate, and3,3′-dimethyldiphenylmethane-4,4′-diisocyanate. Also useful herein arepolyisocyanate homopolymers comprising allophanate, biuret,isocyanurate, iminooxadiazinedione, or carbodiimide groups, for example.A polyol herein can be any polyol comprising two or more hydroxylgroups, for example, a C2 to C12 alkane diol, ethylene glycol,1,2-propylene glycol, 1,3-propylene glycol, isomers of butane diol,pentane diol, hexane diol, heptane diol, octane diol, nonane diol,decane diol, undecane diol, dodecane diol, 2-methyl-1,3-propane diol,2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propane diol (neopentyl glycol),1,4-bis(hydroxymethyl)cyclohexane, 1,2,3-propane triol (glycerol),2-hydroxymethyl-2-methyl-1,3-propanol (trimethylolethane),2-ethyl-2-hydroxymethyl-1,3-propanediol (trimethylolpropane),2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)-1,3-propane diol (pentaerythritol);1,4,6-octanetriol, chloropentanediol; glycerol monoalkyl ether; glycerolmonoethyl ether; diethylene glycol; 1,3,6-hexanetriol;2-methylpropanediol; 2,2,4-trimethyl-1,3-pentanediol,cyclohexanedimethanol, polymeric polyols, for example, polyether polyolsor polyester polyols. In some aspects, a polyol herein can bepoly(oxytetramethylene) glycol, polyethylene glycol, or poly 1,3-propanediol. A polyol in some aspects can be polyester polyol, such as oneproduced by transesterification of aliphatic diacids with aliphaticdiols. Suitable aliphatic diacids include, for example, C3 to C10diacids, malonic acid, succinic acid, glutaric acid, adipic acid,pimelic acid, suberic acid, azelic acid, sebacic acid. In some aspects,aromatic and/or unsaturated diacids can be used to form a polyesterpolyol.

A latex composition in some aspects comprises an epoxy polymer/resin(polyepoxide), such as bisphenol A epoxy resin, bisphenol F epoxy resin,Novolac epoxy resin, aliphatic epoxy resin, or glycidylamine epoxyresin.

A latex composition in some aspects comprises a rubber elastomer. Insome aspects, a rubber elastomer can include one or more diene-basedsulfur-vulcanizable elastomers having a glass transition temperature(Tg) below −30° C., as determined, for example, by dynamic mechanicalanalysis. In further examples, a rubber elastomer herein includesnatural rubber, synthetic polyisoprene, polybutadiene rubber,styrene/butadiene copolymer rubber, ethylene propylene diene monomerrubber, hydrogenated nitrile butadiene rubber, neoprene,styrene/isoprene/butadiene terpolymer rubber, butadiene/acrylonitrilerubber, polyisoprene rubber, isoprene/butadiene copolymer rubber,nitrile rubber, ethylene-acrylic rubber, butyl and halobutyl rubber,chlorosulfonated polyethylene, fluoroelastomer, hydrocarbon rubber,polybutadiene, and silicone rubber.

A latex composition herein comprises insoluble alpha-glucan particlesdispersed in a dispersion (other polymers such as above can optionallybe dispersed along with the alpha-glucan particles) or emulsion, wherethe liquid component of the latex can be water or an aqueous solution.An aqueous solution of a latex in some aspects can comprise an organicsolvent that is either miscible or immiscible with water. Suitableorganic solvents herein include acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, butylacetate, tetrahydrofuran, methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, diethyl ether,glycerol ethers, hexane, toluene, dimethyl acetamide, dimethylformamide,and dimethyl sulfoxide.

A latex composition herein can further comprise one or more additives insome aspects. Examples of additives herein include dispersants,rheological aids, antifoams, foaming agents, adhesion promoters, flameretardants, bactericides, fungicides, preservatives, opticalbrighteners, fillers, anti-settling agents, coalescing agents,humectants, buffers, pigments/colorants (e.g., metallic oxides,synthetic organic pigments, carbon black), viscosity modifiers,antifreeze, surfactants, binders, crosslinking agents, anticorrosionagents, hardeners, pH regulators, salts, thickeners, plasticizers,stabilizers, extenders, and matting agents. Examples of pigments hereininclude titanium dioxide (TiO₂), calcium carbonate, diatomaceous earth,mica, hydrated aluminum oxide, barium sulfate, calcium silicate, clay,silica, talc, zinc oxide, aluminum silicate, nepheline syenite, andmixtures thereof. In some aspects, a latex composition is essentiallyfree from (e.g., less than 1, 0.5, 0.1, or 0.01 wt % of component)starch, starch derivative (e.g., hydroxyalkyl starch), cellulose, and/orcellulose derivative (e.g., carboxymethyl cellulose).

A latex composition in the form of a paint or other coloring agentherein can have a pigment volume concentration (PVC) of about 3% toabout 80% in some aspects. As examples, a flat paint can have a PVC inthe range of about 55-80%, a primer or undercoat can have a PVC in therange of about 30-50%, and/or a gloss colored paint can have a PVC inthe range of about 3-20%. A paint or other coloring agent in someaspects can have a PVC of about 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 55-80%,55-75%, 55-70%, 60-80%, 60-75%, 60-70%, 63-67%, 64-66%, 65-80%, 65-75%,or 65-70%. A PVC value herein can be that of a particular pigment (ormix of pigments) such as those disclosed above (e.g., titanium dioxide),for instance. It is notable that insoluble alpha-glucan particles of thepresent disclosure can act as a pigment extender (see below Examples).For example, insoluble alpha-glucan particles can be used to replace aportion the amount of pigment in a paint (e.g., reduce pigment by about,or at least about, 1%, 2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, 10%, 12.5%, 15%, 17.5%, 20%,22.5%, 25%, 27.5%, 30%, 5-15%, 5-20%, 5-25%, 5-30%, 10-15%, 10-20%,10-25%, 10-30%, 15-20%, 15-25%, 15-30%), while optionally simultaneouslyincreasing the opacity of the paint (despite there being less pigment)by about, or at least about, 1%, 1.25%, 1.5%, 1.75%, 2, 2.25%, 1-2.25%,1-2%, or 1-1.75%. Replacement of pigment with insoluble alpha-glucanparticles herein can be on a basis of about 0.9-1.1 (e.g., 1.0) partspigment to about 0.5-0.7 (e.g., 0.6 parts) insoluble alpha-glucanparticles, for example. Aside from these advantages (opacity, lesspigment needed), insoluble alpha-glucan particles of the presentdisclosure are believed to provide one or more other physical propertiesto a latex composition (e.g., for use as a paint or other coloringagent): increased hardness, reduced tackiness, decreased gloss (i.e.,providing a matte effect), increased shear strength, better abrasionresistance, improved dry time, improved fade resistance, lowerblistering, and/or improved hand (a less tacky feel), for example, ascompared to a latex composition that only differs by not comprising theinsoluble alpha-glucan particles.

A latex composition herein can be applied to the substrate of an article(above) using any method known in the art. Typically, after applicationof the latex composition, at least a portion of the aqueous solution isremoved, for example by drying, to provide an adhesive, film, coating,or binder comprising the latex composition in a dry or semi-dry form.Suitable application methods include air knife coating, rod coating, barcoating, wire bar coating, spray coating, brush coating, cast coating,flexible blade coating, gravure coating, jet applicator coating, shortdwell coating, slide hopper coating, curtain coating, flexographiccoating, size-press coating, reverse roll coating, and transfer rollcoating. A latex composition can be applied on at least a portion of asubstrate, and can be in one or more coats/applications, for example.

Some aspects herein are drawn to a pigment-comprising composition. Apigment-comprising composition can be in a liquid form (e.g., an aqueousor non-aqueous composition herein) or solid form (e.g., a drycomposition herein). Examples of a pigment-comprising composition hereininclude any of such compositions disclosed elsewhere herein (e.g.,paint, primer, stain), ink, dye (e.g., food-coloring dye,fabric-coloring dye), resin, sunscreen, and cosmetics (e.g., mascara,blush, nail varnish/polish, lipstick, gloss, eyeliner, foundation, eyeshadow, skin decoration composition). A pigment-comprising compositioncan be in a liquid form (e.g., an aqueous or non-aqueous compositionherein) or solid form (e.g., a dry composition herein). A pigment in apigment-comprising composition can be any pigment herein, for example.Examples of a pigment for these and/or other aspects herein includeoxides of titanium (e.g., titanium dioxide), zinc, iron, zirconium,cerium, and chromium; manganese violet; ultramarine blue; chromiumhydrate; Prussian Blue; zinc sulfide; nitroso, nitro, azo, xanthene,quinoline, anthraquinone and/or phthalocyanine compounds; metal complexcompounds; and isoindolinone, isoindoline, quinacridone, perinone,perylene, diketopyrrolopyrrole, thioindigo, dioxazine, triphenylmethaneand/or quinophthalone compounds. Further pigment examples useful hereinare disclosed in U.S. Patent. Appl. Publ. No. 2006/0085924, which isincorporated herein by reference.

In some aspects, a composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucanparticles can be in the form of a composite (e.g., rubber composite orpolyurethane composite) such as disclosed in International Patent Appl.Publ. Nos. WO2018/081263 or WO2018/017789, or U.S. Patent Appl. Publ.Nos. 2019/0225737 or 2017/0362345, all of which are incorporated hereinby reference. It can optionally be stated that a composite as presentlydisclosed comprises at least one polymer in addition to insolublealpha-glucan particles. One or more of the above components (e.g., arubber or polyurethane) of a latex composition can optionally be anadditional polymer in such a composite. An additional polymer of acomposite herein can be rubber, polyurethane, thermoplastic polymer,polyethylene, polypropylene, ethylene copolymer, polyvinyl butyrate,polylactic acid, polyvinyl alcohol, polyamide, polyether thermoplasticelastomer, polyester, polyether ester, ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer,starch, cellulose, or any suitable polymer as disclosed above for latexcomponents.

Rubber in some aspects can be one or more of natural rubber, syntheticrubber, polyisoprene, polybutadiene, styrene-butadiene copolymer,styrene-isoprene copolymer, butadiene-isoprene copolymer,styrene-butadiene-isoprene terpolymer, ethylene propylene diene monomerrubber, hydrogenated nitrile butadiene rubber, silicone rubber, orneoprene, for instance. Examples of composites herein comprising rubberinclude tires (e.g., auto/bicycle; pneumatic tire; including tire treadsand/or sidewalls), belts (e.g., conveyor belts, power transmissionbelts), hoses, gaskets, footwear (e.g., shoes, sneakers, boots; soles,cushioning, and/or aesthetic features), coatings, films, and adhesives.Rubber composites herein typically are vulcanized. Notably, theinclusion of insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein in a compositecomprising rubber can provide advantages such as lower cost, lowerdensity, lower energy consumption during processing, and/or better orequal performance as compared to use of an incumbent filler such ascarbon black or silica (e.g., increased wet traction, reduced rollingresistance, lighter weight, and/or mechanical strength); suchperformance enhancements can be with tires in some aspects. In someaspects, insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein replace about, or atleast about, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95,or 100 wt % of an incumbent filler (e.g., carbon black, or silica) thatis typically used in a rubber composite such as a tire. It is noted thatrubber composite tires currently on the market (that do not compriseinsoluble alpha-glucan particles herein) typically comprise up to about30 wt % of an incumbent filler such as carbon black. Thus, a rubbercomposite herein such as a tire can comprise about, or at least about,5, 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 wt % insoluble alpha-glucan particles aspresently disclosed, for example. A rubber composition comprisinginsoluble alpha-glucan particles herein can have a low minimum elastictorque (M_(L)) (e.g., less than, or about, 0.10, 0.08, 0.06, 0.04, 0.03,or 0.02 dNm [deciNewton-meter]) in some aspects, and so a method ofmixing a rubber composition during its preparation is disclosed. Arubber composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles hereincan have, or be within plus/minus 5% or 10% of, any of thefeatures/values (e.g., density, tensile strength, elongation, modulus,tan delta, cure time, elastic torque) listed in Table 5 below (Example9), for example. A rubber composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucanparticles as a filler herein can have any of the other non-filleringredients/components listed in Table 4 below (Example 9) (optionallywithin plus/minus 5% or 10% of the listed content thereof), and/or havethe listed content of (or plus/minus 5% or 10% thereof) insolublealpha-glucan particles, for example.

The present disclosure also concerns a composition comprising at leasttwo different phases and insoluble alpha-glucan particles herein,wherein the particles are at the interface of the two phases. Typically,the particles can modify (e.g., reduce) the interfacial tension betweenthe two phases. One phase can be hydrophilic (e.g., be an aqueouscomposition herein such as water, aqueous solution, or aqueousdispersion), while another phase can be hydrophobic (e.g., oil and/orother organic liquid), for example. While insoluble alpha-glucanparticles herein are located at the interfacial surface of the twophases, particles can optionally also be present in at least one of thedifferent phases (e.g., hydrophilic phase). Interfacial tension can bemeasured in units of mN/m (milli-Newtons per meter). In some aspects,insoluble alpha-glucan particles can reduce interfacial tension byabout, or at least about, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30,35, 40, 5-30, 5-25, 5-20, 5-15, 5-10, 10-30, 10-25, 10-20, or 10-15mN/m.

Non-limiting examples of compositions and methods disclosed hereininclude:

1a. A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles having adegree of crystallinity of at least about 0.65, wherein the insolublealpha-glucan has a weight-average degree of polymerization (DPw) of atleast 15, and at least 50% of the glycosidic linkages of the insolublealpha-glucan are alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages.2a. The composition embodiment 1a, wherein at least about 90% of theglycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3linkages.3a. The composition of embodiment 1a, wherein at least about 99% of theglycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3linkages.4a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, or 3a, wherein the DPw of theinsoluble alpha-glucan is at least about 35 or 40, or is about 35 or 40to about 100.5a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, or 3a, wherein the DPw of theinsoluble alpha-glucan is about 35 or 40 to about 60.6a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, or 5a, wherein thecomposition is an aqueous composition (e.g., dispersion, emulsion).7a. The composition of embodiment 6a, wherein the aqueous composition isa dispersion.8a. The composition of embodiment 7a, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles are dispersed through at least about 90% of the volume of thedispersion.9a. The composition of embodiment 6a, 7a, or 8a, wherein the aqueouscomposition has a pH of about 0.0 to about 5.0.10a. The composition of embodiment 6a, 7a, or 8a, wherein the aqueouscomposition has a pH of about 0.0 to about 1.0, or about 0.0 to about2.0.11a. The composition of embodiment 6a, 7a, or 8a, wherein the aqueouscomposition has a pH of about 2.0 to about 4.0, optionally wherein thispH range provides an anti-microbial effect to the composition (e.g.,kills, or inhibits growth/proliferation of, microbes such as bacteria,yeast, or algae).12a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, or 11a, wherein at least 70% by weight of the insolublealpha-glucan particles have a diameter of less than 1.0 micron.13a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, or 11a, wherein 45-55% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles have a diameter of less than 0.35 micron.14a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, 11a, 12a, or 13a, wherein the temperature of the composition is upto about 125° C.15a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, 11a, 12a, 13a, or 14a, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucan particleshaving a degree of crystallinity of at least about 0.7.16a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, 11a, 12a, 13a, 14a, or 15a, wherein at least 80 wt % of theparticles are in the form of plates.17a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, 11a, 12a, 13a, 14a, 15a, or 16a, wherein the composition is ahousehold care product, personal care product, industrial product,ingestible product (e.g., food product), or pharmaceutical product.18a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, 11a, 12a, 13a, 14a, 15a, 16a, or 17a, wherein the composition is:(a) a latex composition, such as paint or adhesive; (b) apigment-comprising composition such as paint or sunscreen; (c) a film orcoating, such as an edible film or coating, (d) a detergent composition;(e) a composite comprising at least one polymer in addition to theinsoluble alpha-glucan particles, optionally wherein the additionalpolymer is polyurethane, rubber, or a thermoplastic polymer; or (f) anencapsulant that encapsulates a composition comprising a compound,optionally wherein the encapsulant allows for controlled release of thecompound.19a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, 11a, 12a, 13a, 14a, 15a, 16a, 17a, or 18a, wherein the compositionfurther comprises at least one additive that modifies the mechanicalproperties of the composition, optionally wherein the additive isselected from a crosslinker, plasticizer, conditioning agent, dispersingagent, or wetting agent, optionally further wherein the composition is afilm or coating.20a. The composition of embodiment 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a,10a, 11a, 12a, 13a, 14a, 15a, 16a, 17a, 18a, or 19a, wherein thecomposition comprises at least two different phases, and said insolublealpha-glucan particles are at the interface of the two different phases.21a. A method of producing insoluble alpha-glucan particles (e.g., asrecited in any of embodiments 1a-5a, 12a, 13a, 15a, or 16a), the methodcomprising: (a) providing insoluble alpha-glucan as produced in anenzymatic reaction comprising at least water, sucrose and aglucosyltransferase enzyme that synthesizes the insoluble alpha-glucan,wherein the insoluble alpha-glucan has a weight-average degree ofpolymerization (DPw) of at least about 200 and at least 50% of theglycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3glycosidic linkages; (b) hydrolyzing the insoluble alpha-glucan toinsoluble alpha-glucan particles with a DPw of about 35 or 40 to about100, wherein the hydrolyzing is performed under aqueous conditions at apH of 2.0 or less, and (c) optionally isolating the insolublealpha-glucan particles produced in step (b).

Non-limiting examples of compositions and methods disclosed herein alsoinclude:

1b. A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucan particles, whereinat least 80 wt % of the particles are in the form of plates and at least50% of the glycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan arealpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages, and: (i) at least 70% by weight of theinsoluble alpha-glucan particles have a diameter of less than 1.0micron, and/or (ii) 45-55% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles have a diameter of less than 0.35 micron.2b. The composition of claim 1b, wherein at least about 90% of theglycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3linkages.3b. The composition of claim 1b, wherein at least about 99% of theglycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3linkages.4b. The composition of claim 1b or 2b, wherein the insolublealpha-glucan particles have a degree of crystallinity of at least about0.65.5b. The composition of claim 4b, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles have a degree of crystallinity of at least about 0.7.6b. The composition of claim 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, or 5b, wherein theweight-average degree of polymerization (DPw) of the insolublealpha-glucan is at least 15.7b. The composition of claim 6b, wherein the DPw of the insolublealpha-glucan is at least about 35 or 40, or is about 35 or 40 to about100.8b. The composition of claim 6b, wherein the DPw of the insolublealpha-glucan is about 35 or 40 to about 60.9b. The composition of claim 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, or 8b, whereinthe composition is an aqueous composition (e.g., dispersion, emulsion).10b. The composition of claim 9b, wherein the aqueous composition is adispersion.11b. The composition of claim 10b, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles are dispersed through at least about 90% of the volume of thedispersion.12b. The composition of claim 9b, 10b, or 11b, wherein the aqueouscomposition has a pH of about 0.0 to about 5.0.13b. The composition of claim 9b, 10b, or 11b, wherein the aqueouscomposition has a pH of about 0.0 to about 1.0, or about 0.0 to about2.0.14b. The composition of claim 9b, 10b, or 11b, wherein the aqueouscomposition has a pH of about 2.0 to about 4.0, optionally wherein thispH range provides an anti-microbial effect to the composition (e.g.,kills, or inhibits growth/proliferation of, microbes such as bacteria,yeast, or algae).15b. The composition of claim 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, 8b, 9b, 10b,11b, 12b, 13b, or 14b, wherein the temperature of the composition is upto about 125° C.16b. The composition of claim 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, 8b, 9b, 10b,11b, 12b, 13b, 14b, or 15b, wherein the composition is a household careproduct, personal care product, industrial product, ingestible product(e.g., food product), or pharmaceutical product.17b. The composition of claim 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, 8b, 9b, 10b,11b, 12b, 13b, 14b, 15b, or 16b, wherein the composition is: (a) a latexcomposition, such as paint or adhesive; (b) a pigment-comprisingcomposition such as paint or sunscreen; (c) a film or coating, such asan edible film or coating, (d) a detergent composition; (e) a compositecomprising at least one polymer in addition to the insolublealpha-glucan particles, optionally wherein the additional polymer ispolyurethane, rubber, or a thermoplastic polymer; or (f) an encapsulantthat encapsulates a composition comprising a compound, optionallywherein the encapsulant allows for controlled release of the compound.18b. The composition of claim 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, 8b, 9b, 10b,11b, 12b, 13b, 14b, 15b, 16b, or 17b, wherein the composition furthercomprises at least one additive that modifies the mechanical propertiesof the composition, optionally wherein the additive is selected from acrosslinker, plasticizer, conditioning agent, dispersing agent, orwetting agent, optionally further wherein the composition is a film orcoating.19. The composition of claim 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, 8b, 9b, 10b,11b, 12b, 13b, 14b, 15b, 16b, 17b, or 18b, wherein the compositioncomprises at least two different phases, and said insoluble alpha-glucanparticles are at the interface of the two different phases.20b. A method of producing insoluble alpha-glucan particles (e.g., asrecited in any of embodiments 1b-8b), the method comprising: (a)providing insoluble alpha-glucan as produced in an enzymatic reactioncomprising at least water, sucrose and a glucosyltransferase enzyme thatsynthesizes the insoluble alpha-glucan, wherein the insolublealpha-glucan has a weight-average degree of polymerization (DPw) of atleast about 200 and at least 50% of the glycosidic linkages of theinsoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages; (b)hydrolyzing the insoluble alpha-glucan to insoluble alpha-glucanparticles with a DPw of up to about 100, wherein the hydrolyzing isperformed under aqueous conditions at a pH of 2.0 or less, and (c)optionally isolating the insoluble alpha-glucan particles produced instep (b).

EXAMPLES

The present disclosure is further exemplified in the following Examples.It should be understood that these Examples, while indicating certainaspects herein, are given by way of illustration only. From the abovediscussion and these Examples, one skilled in the art can ascertain theessential characteristics of the disclosed embodiments, and withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope thereof, can make various changesand modifications to adapt the disclosed embodiments to various uses andconditions.

Example 1 Producing Highly Crystalline Insoluble Alpha-Glucan

This Example describes preparing crystalline alpha-glucan in the form ofinsoluble plates. In particular, plates of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucanwere prepared by subjecting enzymatically synthesized alpha 1,3 glucanto hydrolysis.

Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan used in this Example was first prepared byenzymatic synthesis in a manner similar to what is described in U.S.Patent Appl. Publ. Nos. 2018/0340199 and 2019/0078063, which are bothincorporated herein by reference. In general, a glucan synthesisreaction was performed comprising water, sucrose, buffer, filtrate froman earlier glucan synthesis reaction (contains, e.g.,gluco-oligosaccharide byproducts of the earlier glucan synthesisreaction), and an amino acid-modified, high product-yieldingglucosyltransferase enzyme. Following the reaction, the alpha-1,3-glucanproduct (insoluble, ˜100% alpha-1,3 linkages, DPw of about 800) wasfiltered and washed to remove most fructose and other residual solublesugars (e.g., glucose, sucrose, leucrose, DP2-DP8gluco-oligosaccharides). Samples of the washed product were then eithercollected into wet cakes (never-dried) of about 20-40 wt % solids ordried in a rotary dryer to powders of about 88-95 wt % solids.

Samples of both never-dried and dried insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan werethen subjected to hydrochloric acid hydrolysis procedures at a pH ofalmost 0 at 80° C. to produce reduced molecular weight insolublealpha-1,3-glucan. Each hydrolysis reaction as initiated contained 8 wt %alpha-1,3-glucan. Procedures disclosed in U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No.2013/0244287 (incorporated herein by reference), which describes mineralacid hydrolysis of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan to solublealpha-1,3-glucan, can be applied with appropriate modification tohydrolyze alpha-1,3-glucan to a lower molecular weight, but insoluble,form. Hydrolysis reactions were allowed to proceed for 1 hour, 8 hours,1 day, or 3 days before being neutralized. Each hydrolyzed, insolublealpha-1,3-glucan product was then analyzed for molecular weight. FIG. 1shows that insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan with a weight-average degree ofpolymerization (DPw) of roughly 40-60 was produced after one day ofhydrolysis of either never-dried or dried insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan.Notably, this molecular weight was stable, remaining at a similar DPwfor the duration of hydrolysis under the very low pH conditions (FIG.1). In a separate hydrolysis, insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan with a DPw ofabout 39 was produced (data not shown).

Crystallinity (or crystallinity index [CI]) of the alpha-1,3-glucansamples was measured by wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) as follows.Glucan powder samples were dried for a minimum of two hours or overnight(but sometimes over the weekend) in a vacuum oven set at 60° C.Immediately before starting the diffraction scan, each sample wasremoved from the oven and transferred into a stainless steel holder witha well of about 1.5 cm wide by 4 cm long by 4 mm deep. The well was openat the side such that powder could be poured in through the side, with aglass plate clipped onto the top of the holder. The powder was packeddown several times throughout the filling process by hitting theopposite side of the holder against the table repeatedly. Finally, theholder was turned right-side-up, the glass plate was removed, and theholder was loaded into a diffractometer. The time from the opening ofthe oven to the start of the scan was five minutes or less. An X'PERTMPD POWDER diffractometer (PANalytical B.V., The Netherlands) inreflection mode was used to measure the X-ray diffraction pattern ofeach powder sample. The X-ray source was a Cu X-ray tube line sourcewith an optical focusing mirror and a 1/16° narrowing slit. X-rays weredetected with a 1-D detector and an anti-scatter slit set at ⅛°. Datawere collected in the range of 4 to 60 degrees of two-theta at 0.1degrees per step. The scan took about 46 minutes in total. The resultingX-ray pattern was then analyzed by subtracting a linear baseline from7.2 to 30.5 degrees, subtracting the XRD pattern of a known amorphousalpha-1,3-glucan sample that had been scaled to fit the current data,and then fitting the remaining crystal peaks in that range with a seriesof Gaussian curves corresponding to known dehydrated alpha-1,3-glucancrystal reflections. The area corresponding to the crystal peaks wasthen divided by the total area under the baseline-subtracted curve toyield a crystallinity index.

The crystallinity of the alpha-1,3-glucan samples prepared above byhydrolysis was compared to the crystallinity of enzymaticallypolymerized alpha-1,3-glucan that was not subjected to hydrolysis. FIG.2 shows that hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan has substantially greatercrystallinity (over 0.65) compared to non-hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan.In particular, hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan with a DPw of 50 (made byacid-hydrolyzing, as above, wet cake for 48 hours at 40° C.) had acrystallinity of about 0.76 (FIG. 2, left square). A sample ofhydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan with a DPw of 94 (made by acid-hydrolyzing,as above, wet cake for 1 hour at 40° C.) had a crystallinity of about0.69 (FIG. 2, left square). However, samples of non-hydrolyzedalpha-1,3-glucan (˜100% alpha-1,3 linkages) produced enzymatically andhaving DPw's ranging from ˜230 to ˜830 had lower crystallinities (FIG.2, filled circles) (the molecular weight of alpha-1,3-glucan as producedenzymatically can be modulated to be within the range of DPw 230-830using a technique as described in, for example, U.S. Patent Appl. Publ.No. 2015/0064748, which is incorporated herein by reference).

Using electron microscopy, the microstructure of hydrolyzedalpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI, 1.2 PDI) was compared to that ofnon-hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw ˜800) (as produced above) (FIGS.3A-D). The glucan samples were imaged by dry-cast electron microscopyusing phosphotungstate as a contrast agent, as follows. Slurries of DPw50 and DPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucan were purified by multiple rounds ofcentrifugation and redispersion into DI water. The final purified glucansamples were diluted 100-fold and then sonicated for 3 minutes. Oncesonication was completed, supernatant from each preparation was isolatedto prepare a dry-cast transmission electron microscopy (TEM) sample on acopper mesh TEM grid. Phosphotungstic acid was then used for negativecontrast staining, after which TEM imaging was performed. The capturedTEM images usually were from sections located at the edge of a largerthick sample deposited on the TEM grid. The hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan(DPw 50) exhibited two-dimensional structures (>about 90 wt % ofmaterial that was not aggregated was in the form of plates) (FIGS. 3Band 3D), whereas the non-hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw ˜800)exhibited larger, three-dimensional fibrillar structures (FIGS. 3A and3C). TEM imaging of non-hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan (˜100% alpha-1,3linkages) produced enzymatically and having a DPw of about 260 showed amicrostructure very similar to that of non-hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan(DPw ˜800) (data not shown).

Particle size measurement by light scatter analysis of aqueousdispersions indicated that the hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50) hada particle size distribution in which ˜90% by weight of all particleswere under 1 micron in size (D50 value ranged from about 0.15 to 0.2micron, but can range from about 0.1 to 1.0 micron), while thenon-hydrolyzed alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw ˜800) had a particle sizedistribution in which >80% by weight of all particles were over 10microns (D50 value ranged from about 10 to 20 microns, but can rangefrom about 5 to 50 microns) (FIG. 4).

Example 2 Aqueous Dispersions of Highly Crystalline InsolubleAlpha-Glucan are Stable Across Changes in pH

This Example describes the effects of lowering pH on the viscosities ofaqueous dispersions of highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucan ornon-crystalline alpha-glucan. In particular, dispersions of insolublealpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) retained a stable viscosity profileunder low pH conditions, whereas dispersions of insolublealpha-1,3-glucan (DPw ˜800) exhibited changes in viscosity under thesame conditions.

Aqueous dispersions (5 wt %, room temperature) of insolublealpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI, as prepared in Example 1) orinsoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw ˜800, as prepared in Example 1) wereprepared and adjusted to pH 2.0 or 6.4. The aqueous dispersions werethen analyzed for viscosity (using a BROOKFIELD viscometer at shearrates between 1-1000 s⁻¹) (FIGS. 5A-B). At pH 6.4, dispersions of theDPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan exhibited about a two orders of magnitude higherviscosity profile as compared to the viscosity profile of dispersions ofthe DPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucan (FIG. 5A). Also of note, dispersions ofthe DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan at pH 2.0 exhibited no change in viscosityprofile compared to the neutral condition of pH 6.4 (FIG. 5B). Thisunaltered viscosity profile is unique, since other polysaccharides suchas nanocellulose and microcrystalline cellulose exhibit significantdrops in viscosity in low pH conditions (U.S. Pat. No. 2,978,446,incorporated herein by reference).

The unique high viscosity at low concentration (5 wt %, above) ofinsoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI), and its pH-stability,allowed for good compatibility when mixed into a low pH latexdispersion. In particular, FIG. 6 compares aqueous preparations thatwere initially set up as dispersions (room temperature, pH 4.0)comprising 4 wt % alpha-1,3-glucan (either DPw 50 or DPw ˜800 glucanfrom above) and 14 wt % vinyl acetate/ethylene (VAE) latex. While VAEdispersions with DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan remained stable for at least 3weeks (the dispersions were discarded after this period) and arebelieved to be stable for at least 6-12 months, DPw ˜800alpha-1,3-glucan settled out of VAE dispersions (FIG. 6) in under onehour. Typically, latex dispersions are pH-stabilized at either pH 3-4 orpH 8-9, but the low pH condition of pH 3-4 makes it challenging forusing polysaccharides in latex dispersions under this pH-stabilizationregimen. While DPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucan has been shown to be somewhatstable in such low pH dispersions at higher concentrations (data notshown), its instability at 4 wt % as shown here suggests its use at lowconcentrations (e.g., >5 wt %) is problematic. Thus, it is notable thatinsoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50) was stably dispersible under theseconditions.

Example 3 Highly Crystalline Insoluble Alpha-Glucan can be Used as aPigment Extender in Paint Compositions

This Example describes using highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucanas a pigment extender in paint compositions. In particular, insolublealpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) was used to replace titanium dioxide(TiO₂) pigment in paint, and enhanced the opacity function of thispigment. This enhancement was coupled with being able to reduce theamount of TiO₂ used in paint.

TiO₂ is the most widely used white pigment in paint due to its highrefractive index. An issue with using TiO₂ as pigment is the inherentcolloidal instability of TiO₂ particles. TiO₂ particles are usuallycoated with SiO₂ to address this problem. However, even with anSiO₂-coated structure, the efficiency of TiO₂ particles as a pigmentingagent is decreased if TiO₂ particles are not spaced adequately (idealspacing is ˜200 nm).

TiO₂ particle-spacing additives are referred to as TiO₂ extenders. Itwas found in this Example that insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76CI) can be used as an efficient TiO₂ extender in paint, as follows.White paint formulations were generally prepared as follows. A controlpaint formulation (no alpha-1,3-glucan added) contained 65 pigmentvolume concentration (PVC) TiO₂ pigment, while experimental paintformulations contained insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (either of the DPw 50or DPw ˜800 samples, above) in replacement of a certain portion of theTiO₂ pigment component. This replacement was based on a ratio of TiO₂ toalpha-1,3-glucan of 1.0 to 0.6 (based on PVC in the formulation). Theformulated paints were applied using a 3-mil bird bar and driedovernight at about 70° C. and 50% humidity, after which L* (whiteness)and opacity (Y) levels of the dried paint were measured (Table 1) asdescribed in International Patent Appl. Publ. No. WO2019046123, which isincorporated herein by reference.

TABLE 1 Performance of Paint Comprising Insoluble Alpha- 1,3-Glucan inReplacement of TiO₂ Pigment Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan ^(a) % TiO₂ DPw~800 DPw 50 (0.76 CI) Reduction L* ^(b) Opacity (Y) ^(c) L* ^(b) Opacity(Y) ^(c)  0% 95.3 88.6 95.3 88.6  8% 95.4 88.7 95.6 89.5 15% 95.4 89.195.5 89.6 23% 95.2 88.2 95.6 89.7 30% 95.2 88.4 95.6 90.1 ^(a) Insolublealpha-1,3-glucan used to replace listed percentage of TiO₂ in paintformulation, based on a ratio of 1.0 parts TiO₂ to 0.6 partsalpha-1,3-glucan. ^(b) L* value denotes whiteness (L* = 0 indicatesblack and L* = 100 indicates diffuse white). ^(c) Opacity (Y): highernumbers equate to better opacity, or hiding power.

Notably, as shown in Table 1, as TiO₂ was replaced with DPw 50alpha-1,3-glucan, continuous performance increases in whiteness (L*) andopacity were obtained.

Example 4 Highly Crystalline Insoluble Alpha-Glucan has Unique OpticalProperties

This Example describes preparing an optically transparent product usingcrystalline insoluble alpha-glucan. In particular, a material comprisinginsoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) exhibited high opticalclarity, whereas material comprising insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw˜800) exhibited much lower optical clarity.

Wet cakes of DPw 50 or DPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucan (above) were preparedcomprising about 28.3 wt % or 33.7 wt % of the glucan, respectively.Single layers of about 1-5 mm thick of either of these wet cakes inpaste form were then spread onto aluminum pans and then photographedbefore drying. Notably, the DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan composition wasoptically transparent at a visual level, whereas the DPw ˜800alpha-1,3-glucan composition lacked such clarity (FIG. 7). Inparticular, a black “X” mark could clearly be seen underneath the DPw 50alpha-1,3-glucan material, which was not the case for the ˜800alpha-1,3-glucan material (FIG. 7), which was hazy.

Example 5 Aqueous Dispersions of Highly Crystalline InsolubleAlpha-Glucan are Stable

This Example describes the effects of drying (prior to glucan dispersal)on the viscosities of aqueous dispersions of highly crystallineinsoluble alpha-glucan or non-crystalline alpha-glucan. In particular,dispersions of dried insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) showeda viscosity profile similar to that of never-dried material, whereasdispersions of dried insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw ˜800) showedsignificantly reduced viscosity formation compared to its never-driedform. The viscosity-forming ability the DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan, evenwhen in dry form, represents another advantage of this material.

Wet cakes of DPw 50 or DPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucan (above) were preparedcomprising about 40 wt % glucan. Samples of each of these were thendried at 40-110° C. to powders of about 88-95 wt % solids. Samples ofeach of the wet cakes and dry powders were individually mixed withdeionized water (room temperature, neutral pH) by hand-shaking (noautomated device used) at 10 wt % solids. Each of these preparations wasthen processed at room temperature with a hand-held rotor stator (IKAT-25) at 10000 rpm (revolutions per minute) for 10 minutes. Theresulting preparations, which manifested as dispersions for all but oneof the preparations (see below), were then assessed for viscosity asdescribed in Example 2.

As shown in FIG. 8, the preparation of dried DPw ˜800 alpha-1,3-glucanin water had a viscosity level that was substantially less than theviscosity of the preparation of its never-dried form; its viscosity wasless than 0.15% of the viscosity of the never-dried material. Thisresult was consistent with the observation that the dispersion formed bythe latter preparation was stable, whereas the former preparation hardlyformed a dispersion at all (data not shown). Notably, the dispersions ofdried DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan had viscosity levels that were comparable(within about 20-50%) to the viscosity of its never-dried form indispersion (FIG. 8). Also, dispersions of either the dried ornever-dried DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan were stable (data not shown).

Example 6 Emulsion Stabilization with Highly Crystalline InsolubleAlpha-Glucan

This Example shows that highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucan canstabilize emulsions. In particular, insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50,0.76 CI) demonstrated a stabilization effect on emulsions having anarrow droplet size distribution.

DPw 50 (0.76 CI) alpha-1,3-glucan was added to 0.5 or 2.0 wt %concentrations in 50:50 mixtures of dodecane and water. DPw ˜800alpha-1,3-glucan (never-dried, 40 wt % wet cake) and alpha-1,3-glucanfibrids (prepared according to U.S. Pat. Appl. Publ. No. 2018/0119357,incorporated herein by reference) were similarly added to dodecane:watermixtures. Each preparation was then homogenized using a rotor statorhomogenizer (Pro Scientific Pro 250) at 35000 rpm for 2 minutes. Theresulting emulsions, which contained dodecane droplets dispersed inwater, were analyzed for droplet size and stability. Droplet size wasmeasured using a confocal laser scanning microscope where the dodecanephase was colored using a dye (perylene, 0.01 mg/mL) for contrast.Rheology of each emulsion was measured using a stress-controlledrotational rheometer (Anton Paar MCR-302) having a parallel plategeometry and a gap size of 1 mm.

Droplet size measurements were made directly on each emulsion tocalculate average emulsion droplet size. Rheology measurement of theemulsions was used to calculate their average storage moduli (Avg. G′)in the viscoelastic region. The results of these analyses are listed inTable 2 below. The effectiveness of emulsion stabilization (i.e., Avg.G′, emulsion droplet size) was different for each of thealpha-1,3-glucan materials tested. The DPw 50 alpha-1,3-glucan samplewas unique compared to the DPw ˜800 and fibrid alpha-1,3-glucan samplesas it was able to stabilize the emulsion droplet size (small dropletsize with low standard deviation—i.e., uniformly small droplets) andbuild elasticity (increased Avg. G′ indicates increased elasticity).Thus, highly crystalline insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan of the presentdisclosure (e.g., DPw 50, 0.76 CI) can be used by itself as an emulsionstabilizer or can be combined with other stabilizers (e.g.,alpha-1,3-glucan fibrids).

TABLE 2 Properties of Emulsions Stabilized by Insoluble Alpha-1,3-GlucanEmulsion Emulsion Droplets Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan Avg. G′ Avg. SizeStd. Dev. Sample wt % (Pa) (μm) (μm) DPw 50 (0.76 CI) 0.5 53 29.8 8 DPw50 (0.76 CI) 2.0 102 29.1 7.1 Fibrids 0.5 70 141.3 74.6 Fibrids 2.0 200171.6 93.5 DPw ~800 ^(a) 0.5 19 33.7 19.4 DPw ~800 ^(a) 2.0 148 49.341.8 ^(a) This glucan was never-dried and in the form of a 40 wt % wetcake prior to use in emulsion formation.

Example 7 Encapsulation with Highly Crystalline Insoluble Alpha-Glucan

This Example shows that highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucan can beused to form dry emulsions. The constituent particles of these emulsionscontain a core of stabilized material that is encapsulated by a shell ofthe insoluble alpha-glucan. In particular, insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan(DPw 50, 0.76 CI) was used to encapsulate an oil (shea nut butter),thereby forming particles with a hydrophobic core.

A mixture of DPw 50 (0.76 CI) alpha-1,3-glucan with water and shea nutbutter was prepared at a ratio of 2 (glucan):20 (water):11 (shea nutbutter). The mixture was heated to 60° C. under agitation to melt theshea nut butter. To form a liquid emulsion of the mixture, the mixturewas homogenized using a rotor stator homogenizer (Ultra-Turrax T25, IKA)at 20 krpm for 5 minutes. Stability of the emulsion was confirmedvisually.

The emulsion was freeze-dried or spray-dried to produce dry powder formsof the emulsion. To freeze-dry, the emulsion was rapidly cooled usingdry ice and dried under vacuum at −50° C. for 48 hours.

To spray-dry, the emulsions were spray-dried using a spray-drier (YamatoPulvis GB22) fitted with an external peristatic pump (Cole-PalmerMasterflex L/S) with #14 silicon tubing (Precision Pump). Atomizationwas done with a two-fluid nozzle and used air at 7 psi as theatomization gas. The drying air flow rate was 0.68 m³/min, the dry inlettemperature was 120° C., and the outlet temperature was 50° C.

Each powder, produced by either freeze-drying or spray-drying, wasimaged at 5000× by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). SEM was conductedwith an FEI QUANTA 650 unit operating between 0.8 and 1 mbar and 10 kVof acceleration voltage. It was observed that each of the dried powderemulsions contained particles having a shea nut butter core and analpha-1,3-glucan protective shell (e.g., see FIG. 9).

Example 8 Edible Coatings Comprising Highly Crystalline InsolubleAlpha-Glucan

This Example shows that highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucan can beused in edible coatings on foods such as fruits and vegetables. Suchedible coatings can be used, for example, to increase the shelf life offood. In particular, insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) wasused in edible coatings on avocados. Compared to uncoated samples,coating with the insoluble glucan inhibited fruit ripening, asdetermined by two different analyses.

Unripened avocados were dip-coated with a dispersion of 6-9 wt %insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) (in water) and stored at 5or 20° C. under 85% relative humidity (RH) for 1 week. The ripeness ofthe coated avocado samples was compared to the ripeness of uncoatedavocado samples stored under the same conditions. Ripeness wasclassified using a five stage ready-to-eat (RTE) classification, asfollows:

Stage 1: RTE insufficient, too hard (this stage generally characterizesthe unripened avocado samples as entered to these analyses).

Stage 2: RTE sufficient, but some hardness.

Stage 3: RTE sufficient.

Stage 4: RTE sufficient, but some softness.

Stage 5: RTE insufficient, too soft.

The results of these analyses were as follows, indicating that coatingswith insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan herein can prevent fruit ripening:

Uncoated sample, 5° C.: RTE Stage 1-2.

Uncoated sample, 20° C.: RTE Stage 3-4.

Coated sample, 20° C.: RTE Stage 1.

Also, the release of ethylene from the avocado samples (in duplicate) at20° C. was tracked over time by gas chromatography. Ethylene productionwas tracked over four days (in parts-per-million [ppm]). Coated avocadosshowed a significantly lower amount of ethylene production, as shown inTable 3. This result is consistent with the above results that coatingswith insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan herein can prevent fruit ripening.

TABLE 3 Ethylene Emission by Avocado Samples Avocado Coated withUncoated Avocado Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan Day Duplicate 1 Duplicate 2Duplicate 1 Duplicate 2 1 20.01 ppm 14.74 ppm 2.04 ppm 5.50 ppm 2 17.60ppm 19.36 ppm 2.65 ppm 6.98 ppm 3 15.00 ppm 18.02 ppm 2.81 ppm 7.21 ppm4 13.53 ppm 16.04 ppm 3.16 ppm 6.87 ppm

Example 8 Barrier Coatings Comprising Highly Crystalline InsolubleAlpha-Glucan

This Example shows that highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucan can beused in barrier coatings for products. These barriers can provideprotection against hydrophobic substances such as oil. In particular,aqueous preparations comprising insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76CI) and other components were used to coat paper; these paper coatingsresisted absorption of oil.

Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) was dispersed in aqueoussolutions of 10 wt % water-soluble cationic alpha-1,3-glucan (WSCG),polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH, Mw 31 kDa, Sigma Aldrich), or starch (solublepotato starch, Sigma-Aldrich) at two different ratios: 8 parts or 5parts of WSCG, PVOH, or starch to 2 parts or 5 parts of the insolublealpha-1,3-glucan, respectively (these ratios were based on the wt %'s ofeach component in the final preparation). Each preparation was thencoated onto a paper substrate using an automatic film applicator(ZAA2600 ZEHNTNER, RDS 3 rod). As controls, preparations with 10 wt %WSCG, PVOH, or starch, without any added insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan,were coated onto paper. The coated paper was dried and cut into 25-cm²sheets and analyzed using a Cobb tester (inside area 10 cm²). Inparticular, the coated paper was exposed to 10 mL of either water orcastor oil for 60 seconds. At the 45-second mark, the contents wereflipped out and the paper was carefully removed from the clamp. Eachpaper sample (weight thereof provided as “m_(dry)”) was then blotted androlled with a 10 kg roller at the 60-second mark to remove excess wateror oil. The end weight of the paper (“m_(exposed)”) was measuredimmediately. The following equation was used to calculate the Cobb value(g/m²) for each sample:

${{Cobb}\mspace{14mu}{value}} = \frac{m_{exposed} - m_{dry}}{10 \times 10^{4}}$

The Cobb value (Cobb index value) provides a measure of absorption bypaper of an applied liquid; the higher the value, the higher theabsorption. The following Cobb index value ranges were used tocharacterize the degree of water or oil absorption by paper in the abovetests:

Cobb Index Barrier Property Value Classification >20 Not Good 10-20Medium  5-10 Good  <5 ExcellentThe Cobb index values measured for the above samples are listed in Table4 below.

TABLE 4 Cobb Index Values of Coated Paper Exposed to Oil or Water CobbIndex Value Coating Composition Oil Water WSCG 5 21.5 WSCG/ 5.4 20.5Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan (8:2) WSCG/ 7.2 28.9 InsolubleAlpha-1,3-Glucan (5:5) PVOH 15 25 PVOH/ 5.8 23.2 InsolubleAlpha-1,3-Glucan (8:2) PVOH/ 16.7 28.1 Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan (5:5)Starch 6.6 43.6 Starch/ 4.8 37.6 Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan (8:2)Starch/ 7.2 29.4 Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan (5:5)Based on the data in Table 4, it is apparent that addition of insolublealpha-1,3-glucan herein, especially at a ratio of 2 parts glucan to 8parts of incumbent barrier material, can enhance the barrier propertiesof PVOH and starch against hydrophobic substances such as oil. The aboveresults similarly characterize what is observed when cardboard or flexpaper is used as the paper substrate for coating (data not shown).

Example 9 Reinforcement of Rubber Composites Using Highly CrystallineInsoluble Alpha-Glucan

This Example shows that insoluble alpha-glucan herein can providereinforcement to the physical and dynamic properties of rubbercomposites. In particular, rubber compositions comprising insolublealpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) were produced and analyzed. Based onthis analysis, it is contemplated that insoluble alpha-glucan of thepresent disclosure can be used to reinforce rubber-containing productssuch as tires.

To incorporate insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) into rubbercomposites, a masterbatch of this insoluble alpha-glucan (30 wt %loading) in natural rubber (NR) was prepared. An aqueous dispersion ofthe insoluble alpha-glucan particles (7 wt %) and an NR latex (60 wt %)were mixed together into a slurry and coagulated with formic acid (5 vol%). The coagulum was divided into smaller parts, dried and milled. Thedried coagulum (i.e., masterbatch) (<3% moisture) was used for rubbercompounding.

The above-prepared masterbatch was mixed with rubber additives in aninternal mixer in two passes according to the formulation in Table 5below. In the first pass, the mixer was heated to 120° C. and themasterbatch with all the additives excluding sulfur and CBS were added.The temperature was increased to 150° C. during mixing and held for twominutes at 150° C. As comparative examples, NR masterbatches havingsilica or carbon black, in place of the insoluble alpha-glucan, wereadded in the first pass. In the second pass, the mixer was heated to 80°C. and the mixed rubber from the 1st pass, sulfur and CBS were added.Each rubber preparation was mixed until the temperature reached 95° C.Once each rubber preparation cooled, it was milled in a two-roll mill,and then compression-molded and cured into test specimens forcharacterization.

TABLE 5 Formulation of Rubber Composites Component/Additive phr ^(a)Polymer SMR CV 60 ^(a) 100 Filler 1. Insoluble alpha- 40 1,3-glucan. 2.Silica - Ultrasil 7000 GR. 3. Carbon black - N234. Aromatic ProcessingHYPRENE L2000 5 Oil (TDAE ^(a)) Curative zinc oxide 2.5 Curative stearicacid 2 Antidegradant SANTOFLEX 6PPD 2 Antioxidant WINGSTAY 100 0.5Processing Aid STRUKTOL KK49 2 Accelerator CBS ^(a) 1.70 Curative sulfur1.50 Coupling Agents Si69 ^(a) 8 phf ^(a) (silica) ^(a) Abbreviations ormeanings: phr, parts-per-hundred resin. SMR CV 60, a crosslinked naturalrubber. Si69, bis(3-triethoxysilylpropyl)-tetrasulfide (only used forthe silica-filled composite. TDAE, treated distillate aromatic extract.CBS, N-cyclohexyl-2-benzothiazolesulfenamide. phf, parts per 100 partsof filler.

The natural rubber composite containing insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan as afiller, and the comparative natural rubber composites that containedconventional fillers (carbon black or silica) were tested for physicaland dynamic properties. A natural rubber composite that did not containa filler was similarly tested. The results of these analyses aresummarized in Table 6 below.

TABLE 6 Summary of Key Physical and Dynamic Properties of RubberComposites Filler Carbon Insoluble Alpha- Key Properties None BlackSilica 1,3-glucan Shore A Hardness 42 63 47 52 Density (g/cm³) 1.00 1.081.10 1.06 Tensile Strength 13.3 30.0 15.0 20.8 (MPa) Ultimate Elongation573 580 633 550 (%) DIN Abrasion Loss 1336 170 1430 281 (mm³) t₉₀ CureRate (min) 11.18 5.86 18.80 8.44 Modulus @ 100% 0.91 2.11 0.86 1.80Elongation (MPa) Modulus @ 300% 2.22 10.98 3.11 6.83 Elongation (MPa)Minimum Elastic 0.39 1.43 0.09 0.02 Torque (M_(L)), Min S′ (dNm) MaximumElastic 6.97 16.26 6.58 10.11 Torque (M_(H)), Max S′ (dNm) Tan delta @60° C. 0.015 0.069 0.045 0.032

The following conclusions can be drawn from Table 6:

-   -   Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan NR composites have a lower density        compared to incumbent fillers. Thus, insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan        as disclosed herein is suitable for light-weighting purposes,        for example.    -   Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan as a filler demonstrates overall        improvement in physical properties (tensile strength,        elongation, modulus) compared with high performance silica        (Ultrasil GR 7000) filler, all without the need for a silane        coupling agent (Si69).    -   Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan NR composites have the lowest tan        delta at 60° C. Thus, tires with insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan as        disclosed herein will have good rolling resistance, as compared        to using silica or carbon black instead.    -   Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan mixes have a comparable cure time as        that of N234 carbon black, and much lower M_(L) for good        processing.

Example 10 Enhancement of Polyurethane Films with Highly CrystallineInsoluble Alpha-Glucan

This Example shows that insoluble alpha-glucan herein can enhance themechanical and tensile properties polyurethane-based compositions. Inparticular, polyurethane films comprising insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan(DPw 50, 0.76 CI) were produced and analyzed.

Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) particles were blended witha propanediol (PDO)-sebacate polyol-based polyurethane dispersion (PUD)(Troy Polymers Inc) at different loading levels to make variousone-component polyurethane dispersions (1K-PUD). Formulation details ofthe PUD before are shown in Table 7 below.

TABLE 7 Formulation of Polyurethane Dispersion Component AmountPDO-Sebacate Polyol (2000 MW) 100.00 g Dimethylol Propionic Acid (DMPA)6.72 g DABCO T-12 (dibutyltin dilaurate) 0.09 g Isophorone diisocyanate(IPDI) 35.00 g Triethylamine 4.92 g Water 270.00 g Ethylenediamine 3.43g

Different amounts of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan particles (provided as10 wt % dispersion in water) were loaded to samples of the PUD toprovide preparations with 1 to 50 wt % (relative to total solids)insoluble alpha-glucan. All of these PUD preparations were stable withno signs of phase separation. Each formulation was then blade-coatedonto a polypropylene sheet using a drawdown wire rod #40, and allowed toform a film. The contents of these formulations (pre-coating), and theinsoluble alpha-glucan content of the dried films, are listed in Table 8below.

TABLE 8 Contents of PUD Preparations with Insoluble Alpha- 1,3-Glucan,and of Films Prepared Therewith Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan, 0.6 6.9 26.841.6 62.4 10 wt % solids in water (g)^(a) PDO-Sebacate PUD (Table 7),20.0 20.0 20.0 20.0 20.0 31.2% solids in water (g)^(a) Total solids inwater (wt %) 30.6 25.8 19.1 16.9 15.1 Insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan, 1.010.0 30.0 40.0 50.0 after coating - dry film (wt %) ^(a)Gram amount ofdispersion added.

The tensile properties of each film was then measured using an INSTRONinstrument. The results of this analysis are shown in Table 9 below.

TABLE 9 Tensile Features of Films Formed from Polyurethane DispersionsContaining Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan Refer- Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan(wt % in film) ence^(a) 1% 10% 30% 40% 50% Tensile stress 5146 ± 4569 ±5283 ± 7862 ± 6940 ± 3534 ± at break (psi) 265 318 328 393 474 353Elongation at 794 ± 751 ± 765 ± 566 ± 291 ± 44 ± break (%) 59 56 16 2133 9 Tensile stress 826 ± 739 ± 902 ± 2392 ± 4524 ± — at 50% 99 75 30 72220 elongation (psi) Tensile stress 1731 ± 1606 ± 2014 ± 4655 ± — — at300% 160 163 110 477 elongation (psi) Area under the 20.7 ± 16.8 ± 20.5± 25.5 ± 15.5 ± 0.9 ± curve (ksi) 3.2 1.6 1.6 2.3 2.4 0.2 ^(a)Controlfilm with no insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan component.

The films were further analyzed after hydrolytic aging (50° C., 95% RH,3 days) as shown in Table 10 below.

TABLE 10 Tensile Features of Hydrolytically Aged Films Formed fromPolyurethane Dispersions Containing Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan Refer-Insoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan (wt % in film) ence^(a) 1% 10% 30% 40% 50%Tensile stress 5702 ± 5334 ± 5839 ± 5928 ± 5363 ± 3532 ± at break (psi)348 157 340 390 689 237 Elongation at 936 ± 991 ± 983 ± 797 ± 521 ± 286± break (%) 72 18 51 42 20 22 Tensile stress 616 ± 531 ± 672 ± 1273 ±2271 ± 2827 ± at 50% 14 33 44 96 244 143 elongation (psi) Tensile stress1280 ± 1146 ± 1478 ± 2666 ± 3732 ± — at 300% 17 57 66 180 396 elongation(psi) Area under the 23.3 ± 23.6 ± 27.0 ± 26.2 ± 18.4 ± 8.0 ± curve(ksi) 3.6 0.9 2.8 3.3 2.6 1.3 ^(a)Control film with no insolublealpha-1,3-glucan component.

Addition of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan as presently disclosed into filmsprepared from polyurethane dispersions resulted in positive improvementsin the mechanical properties of the films. These improvements occurredwith or without hydrolytic aging of the films (Tables 9 and 10).

The films were also tested for hardness (ASTM D3363-20, Standard TestMethod for Film Hardness by Pencil Test, ASTM International, 2020) andadhesion (ASTM D3359-17, Standard Test Methods for Rating Adhesion byTape Test, ASTM International, 2017) (both ASTM tests are incorporatedherein by reference). Films containing 10 wt % and 30 wt % insolublealpha-1,3-glucan exhibited improved hardness from H to 2H (ASTM D3363),and improved adhesion from 4A to 5A (ASTM D3359).

Example 11 Melt-Processable Polyurethane Compositions Comprising HighlyCrystalline Insoluble Alpha-Glucan

This Example shows that a water-free masterbatch comprising insolublealpha-glucan herein and polyurethane is melt-processable.

A dispersion of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan particles (DPw 50, 0.76 CI)(8 wt % in water) was blended with a polyurethane dispersion (sameformulation as listed in Table 7 of Example 10) at a ratio of 50/50using an overhead mixer at 200 rpm for 5 minutes. The blendedformulation (10 wt % solids) was dried in a vacuum oven at 80° C. for 48hours to completely remove water. This drying rendered a hard, whitish,crumbly masterbatch preparation that could be molded with application ofheat. For example, a clear film was prepared by heat-pressing themasterbatch dry powder at 105° C. and 20000 psi for 5 minutes. The highoptical clarity (transparency) of the film indicated that the insolublealpha-1,3-glucan component was well dispersed in the polyurethanematrix, and that the glucan has a unique particle size and morphologythat does not create opaqueness.

Example 12 Gas Barrier Coatings Comprising Highly Crystalline InsolubleAlpha-Glucan

This Example shows that highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucan can beused in barrier coatings to protect products from gaseous elements. Inparticular, barriers formed from aqueous preparations comprisinginsoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) particles had reducedoxygen transmission rates.

Films were casted comprising insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76CI) particles, butenediol vinyl alcohol co-polymer (BVOH), and glycerol.To do so, a solution of BVOH and glycerol in water was prepared anddivided into aliquots, after which the insoluble alpha-1,3-glucanparticles were mixed into each aliquot at different concentrations. Onealiquot did not receive any insoluble glucan (blank/control). Each ofthese preparations was then used to cast individual films, which werethen dried. The blank/control film comprised about 90 wt % BVOH andabout 10 wt % glycerol, while the other films contained increasingcontents of the insoluble glucan (5, 10, or 20 wt %). Each film was thentested for its oxygen transmission rate (OTR) using 100% O₂ at 23° C.with 35% or 50% relative humidity (RH); the results of this analysis areshown in Table 11 below.

It is known that BVOH has relatively good OTR properties, and that thisquality changes as a function of RH. At low RH, BVOH has good oxygenbarrier properties (i.e., low OTR), but this benefit decreases at higherRH (i.e., OTR increases). The data in Table 11 indicate that includinginsoluble alpha-1,3-glucan as presently disclosed in films containingBVOH significantly enhances the oxygen barrier capacity of the films atboth of the tested RH conditions. Thus, insoluble alpha-1,3-glucanparticles herein can be used to enhance the oxygen barrier properties ofcompositions such as films, while also providing benefits of increasedbio-content and biodegradability.

TABLE 11 Oxygen Transmission Rates (OTR) of Films Comprising BVOH andInsoluble Alpha-1,3-Glucan Insoluble Alpha- OTR^(a) 1,3-Glucan Thickness(mL O₂/m² · day · bar) Content in Film (μm) RH: 35% RH: 50% 0 wt %(blank) 61.4 0.140 0.966  5 wt % 84.0 0.003 0.738 10 wt % 79.8 0.0080.693 20 wt % 75.6 0.051 0.615 ^(a)OTR was normalized/corrected withrespect to a film thickness of 100 μm.

Example 13 Using Highly Crystalline Insoluble Alpha-Glucan as a Binderin Non-Wovens

This Example shows that highly crystalline insoluble alpha-glucan can beused as a binder/strengthening agent in non-woven products, and thatthis effect can be enhanced when the glucan is crosslinked. Inparticular, the tensile strengths of non-wovens of two different typesof pulp fiber were increased by treatment with insolublealpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) particles that were crosslinked ornon-crosslinked.

Air-laid non-woven sheets comprised of 100% fluff pulp (Georgia-Pacific)were sprayed with dispersions of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50,0.76 CI) particles that were either crosslinked or non-crosslinked, andthen dried in a heated oven at 140° C. for 5 minutes. Alpha-1,3-glucanparticle crosslinking was done using glyoxal, citric acid, orpolyamideamine-epichlorohydrin (PAE). Upon drying the non-woven sheets,sheets receiving glucan particles comprised 80 wt % pulp and (i) 20 wt %glucan (non-crosslinked particles) or (ii) 16 wt % glucan and 4 wt %crosslinker. The dried nonwoven sheets were then analyzed for their dryand wet tensile strength properties using the EDANA standard NWSP110.1.R0 (incorporated herein by reference). The aboveprocedures/analyses were also conducted with wet-laid nonwoven sheetscomprised of 100% northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp (Domtar).These results of this work are listed in Table 12 below.

TABLE 12 Tensile Strengths of Non-Woven Products Comprising InsolubleAlpha-1,3-Glucan Binder (Crosslinked or Non-Crosslinked) Dry Tensile WetTensile Non-Woven Web Forming Strength Strength Composition (wt %)Process (N/5 cm) (N/5 cm) 100% Fluff Pulp Air-laid <0.05 <0.05 80% FluffPulp Air-laid 15.43 <0.05 20% Alpha-1,3-Glucan 80% Fluff Pulp Air-laid26.32 3.73 16% Alpha-1,3-Glucan 4% Glyoxal 80% Fluff Pulp Air-laid 18.750.73 16% Alpha-1,3-Glucan 4% Citric Acid 80% Fluff Pulp Air-laid 23.001.78 16% Alpha-1,3-Glucan 4% PAE 100% NBSK Pulp Wet-laid <0.05 <0.05 80%NBSK Pulp Wet-laid 140.68 4.68 20% Alpha-1,3-Glucan 80% NBSK PulpWet-laid 133.40 80.34 16% Alpha-1,3-Glucan 4% GlyoxalThe data in Table 12 indicate that both non-crosslinked and crosslinkedinsoluble alpha-1,3-glucan particles of the present disclosure canstrengthen non-woven materials.

Example 14 Light Scattering by Highly Crystalline Insoluble Alpha-Glucan

This Example discloses that insoluble alpha-glucan particles of thepresent disclosure have light scattering properties, and thus can beused as a light-scattering additive in compositions such as liquids. Inparticular, dispersions of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI)particles in water were shown to scatter light.

Dispersions of insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan (DPw 50, 0.76 CI) particles inwater at different concentrations (0.008, 0.08, 0.8, 8.0 wt %) weremeasured for scattering of 500 nm wavelength light. A CARY 100 UV-VISspectroscope was used to measure the amount of light scattered inarbitrary units (a.u.). The data listed in Table 13 below indicate thatthe dispersed alpha-glucan particles can effectively scatter light. Evenat 0.08 wt % loading levels, the dispersed particles exhibited asignificant amount of light scattering. Further, it was found that thedispersed insoluble alpha-1,3-glucan does not absorb any light in thevisible spectrum (i.e., the particles form a white dispersion).

TABLE 13 Light Scattering by Dispersions of Insoluble Alpha-1,3-GlucanParticles in Water Alpha-1,3-Glucan Light Scattering Concentration(a.u.) 8 wt % 2.778 0.8 wt % 1.7573 0.08 wt % 0.1762 0.008 wt % 0.002

What is claimed is:
 1. A composition comprising insoluble alpha-glucanparticles having a degree of crystallinity of at least about 0.65,wherein the insoluble alpha-glucan has a weight-average degree ofpolymerization (DPw) of at least 15, and at least 50% of the glycosidiclinkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3 glycosidiclinkages.
 2. The composition of claim 1, wherein at least about 90% ofthe glycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3linkages.
 3. The composition of claim 1, wherein at least about 99% ofthe glycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3linkages.
 4. The composition of claim 1, wherein the DPw of theinsoluble alpha-glucan is about 35 to about
 100. 5. The composition ofclaim 1, wherein the DPw of the insoluble alpha-glucan is about 35 toabout
 60. 6. The composition of claim 1, wherein the composition is anaqueous composition.
 7. The composition of claim 6, wherein the aqueouscomposition is a dispersion.
 8. The composition of claim 7, wherein theinsoluble alpha-glucan particles are dispersed through at least about90% of the volume of the dispersion.
 9. The composition of claim 6,wherein the aqueous composition has a pH of about 0.0 to about 5.0. 10.The composition of claim 6, wherein the aqueous composition has a pH ofabout 0.0 to about 1.0, or about 0.0 to about 2.0.
 11. The compositionof claim 6, wherein the aqueous composition has a pH of about 2.0 toabout 4.0, optionally wherein this pH range provides an anti-microbialeffect to the composition (e.g., kills, or inhibits growth/proliferationof, microbes such as bacteria, yeast, or algae).
 12. The composition ofclaim 1, wherein at least 70% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles have a diameter of less than 1.0 micron.
 13. The compositionof claim 1, wherein 45-55% by weight of the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles have a diameter of less than 0.35 micron.
 14. The compositionof claim 1, wherein the temperature of the composition is up to about125° C.
 15. The composition of claim 1, wherein the insolublealpha-glucan particles having a degree of crystallinity of at leastabout 0.7.
 16. The composition of claim 1, wherein at least 80 wt % ofthe particles are in the form of plates.
 17. The composition of claim 1,wherein the composition is a household care product, personal careproduct, industrial product, ingestible product (e.g., food product), orpharmaceutical product.
 18. The composition of claim 1, wherein thecomposition is: (a) a latex composition, such as paint or adhesive; (b)a pigment-comprising composition, such as paint or sunscreen; (c) a filmor coating, such as an edible film or coating; (d) a detergentcomposition; (e) a composite comprising at least one polymer in additionto the insoluble alpha-glucan particles, optionally wherein theadditional polymer is polyurethane, rubber, or a thermoplastic polymer;or (f) an encapsulant that encapsulates a composition comprising acompound, optionally wherein the encapsulant allows for controlledrelease of the compound.
 19. The composition of claim 1, wherein thecomposition further comprises at least one additive that modifies themechanical properties of the composition, optionally wherein theadditive is selected from a crosslinker, plasticizer, conditioningagent, dispersing agent, or wetting agent, optionally further whereinthe composition is a film or coating.
 20. The composition of claim 1,wherein the composition comprises at least two different phases, andsaid insoluble alpha-glucan particles are at the interface of the twodifferent phases.
 21. A method of producing insoluble alpha-glucanparticles, said method comprising: (a) providing insoluble alpha-glucanas produced in an enzymatic reaction comprising at least water, sucroseand a glucosyltransferase enzyme that synthesizes the insolublealpha-glucan, wherein the insoluble alpha-glucan has a weight-averagedegree of polymerization (DPw) of at least about 200 and at least 50% ofthe glycosidic linkages of the insoluble alpha-glucan are alpha-1,3glycosidic linkages; (b) hydrolyzing the insoluble alpha-glucan toinsoluble alpha-glucan particles with a DPw of about 35 to about 100,wherein said hydrolyzing is performed under aqueous conditions at a pHof 2.0 or less, and (c) optionally isolating the insoluble alpha-glucanparticles produced in step (b).